since my last entry, here are some additional highlights from the day...i'm selfishly blogging them so i don't forget...
seeing families sit around the huge christmas tree in the lobby and exchange gifts with their loved ones, including their loved one who is here in the hospital. several patients were able to come down from their rooms in wheelchairs and one was even in her hospital bed with all her machines in tow. an empty seat was hard to come by, and the sounds of laughter and children ripping packages open filled the wide open space.
accepting a homemade tamale from my favorite housekeeping friend, elvia. she wanted to share her christmas meal with me. it was hard to accept such a precious gift and have nothing to give in return, yet i am thankful.
chatting with sweet girls (probably 3 and 4) dressed up in thier new pink ruffled skirts, carrying 3 of their favorite christmas gifts each, on their way to see papaw. once we got in the elevator one said, "it smells likes doctors in here. are you a doctor?" laughing, i said, "no, i'm not a doctor." "are you a nurse?" "no, i'm a chaplain." the younger one said, "you're a chocolate?" "no, i'm a chaplain. do you know what that is?" "no." "have you ever been to church?" "yes." "i'm kind of like a pastor or a minister at your church." just then the elevator opened and she was off...she may still think i'm a chocolate.
only a little over an hour to go before i head to austin to see my family...another highlight indeed.
Friday, December 25, 2009
The Christmas Message
Merry Christmas. Peace is here.
That is the text message that I woke up to this morning from my friend Gavin. I have carried that thought with me today. I have wondered, "Is peace really here?" I have hoped that "peace is here." And I have said, "YES! Peace is here!" However, mostly I have found myself wishing that everyone would know Peace is here for and with all of us...that is why we find ourselves gathering to celebrate today.
As I drove to the hospital at 6am this morning, I balanced my time with joyful singing of Christmas carols and peaceful reflection on the gift of Peace being born. The sky was so beautiful against the lit buildings of the Med Center. I prayed that I would be an instrument of Peace today for all those in need of knowing Peace.
As I write this, my day is only half way over. However, it has been full. I'll admit, I was a little sad this morning. I was thinking about how my family was probably waking up, sipping on coffee and enjoying the company of each other. I felt a little lonely. I imagined my nephews passing out the gifts. I wondered what gifts they enjoyed the most.
Well, it wasn't long before I was able to experience some gifts of my own...they have just come in different packages this year. They have been in the form of conversations, prayers, and being wished Merry Christmas more times than I can count from strangers who are here caring for others.
One of my most significant gifts came from "Mr. J." He is a black man who is about 8 years my parents' senior. As I entered the room, he looked very pensive, so I said, "Tell me what you're thinking about today, Mr. J." What he'd been thinking about was several of his past Christmases. One of his most memorable was the year he was on military assignment in a snowy camp with lifelines to keep them from the bears. Another was just four years ago when he was barbecuing cornish hens and received a call that his sister had been rushed to the hospital that morning only to die later that day from a heart attack.
As I continued to listen to him share about his life, one of my favorite stories was an experience he had during the Civil Rights Movement in Tupelo. Mississippi. He found himself knocked down and pushed under a bus during a riot. He said, "My own people ran right over me, but three elderly white women and one of their grandsons saw me and dragged me out from under the bus just before it started moving." They carried him to their home, cleaned him up and nurtured him back to health with food and prayer. These strangers, "the other," gave Mr J. a glimpse of Peace that day. He still stays in touch with some of the family members of those women.
He told me what he loves most in life right now is sitting with his grandchildren and telling them stories about his life, sharing what he's learned, and hoping they will choose to be "Children of the Light." I thought, "What a gift he is giving those kids." Over the course of the hour, I realized I was the recipient of that gift too, and I didn't want to be any other place. Unexpectedly, Mr. J. was the instrument of Peace for me, and I was beginning to think that this Christmas might be one of my most memorable.
My prayer is that we all experience Peace, not just today. Expect it to come in unexpected ways.
Isaiah 9:6-7
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.
That is the text message that I woke up to this morning from my friend Gavin. I have carried that thought with me today. I have wondered, "Is peace really here?" I have hoped that "peace is here." And I have said, "YES! Peace is here!" However, mostly I have found myself wishing that everyone would know Peace is here for and with all of us...that is why we find ourselves gathering to celebrate today.
As I drove to the hospital at 6am this morning, I balanced my time with joyful singing of Christmas carols and peaceful reflection on the gift of Peace being born. The sky was so beautiful against the lit buildings of the Med Center. I prayed that I would be an instrument of Peace today for all those in need of knowing Peace.
As I write this, my day is only half way over. However, it has been full. I'll admit, I was a little sad this morning. I was thinking about how my family was probably waking up, sipping on coffee and enjoying the company of each other. I felt a little lonely. I imagined my nephews passing out the gifts. I wondered what gifts they enjoyed the most.
Well, it wasn't long before I was able to experience some gifts of my own...they have just come in different packages this year. They have been in the form of conversations, prayers, and being wished Merry Christmas more times than I can count from strangers who are here caring for others.
One of my most significant gifts came from "Mr. J." He is a black man who is about 8 years my parents' senior. As I entered the room, he looked very pensive, so I said, "Tell me what you're thinking about today, Mr. J." What he'd been thinking about was several of his past Christmases. One of his most memorable was the year he was on military assignment in a snowy camp with lifelines to keep them from the bears. Another was just four years ago when he was barbecuing cornish hens and received a call that his sister had been rushed to the hospital that morning only to die later that day from a heart attack.
As I continued to listen to him share about his life, one of my favorite stories was an experience he had during the Civil Rights Movement in Tupelo. Mississippi. He found himself knocked down and pushed under a bus during a riot. He said, "My own people ran right over me, but three elderly white women and one of their grandsons saw me and dragged me out from under the bus just before it started moving." They carried him to their home, cleaned him up and nurtured him back to health with food and prayer. These strangers, "the other," gave Mr J. a glimpse of Peace that day. He still stays in touch with some of the family members of those women.
He told me what he loves most in life right now is sitting with his grandchildren and telling them stories about his life, sharing what he's learned, and hoping they will choose to be "Children of the Light." I thought, "What a gift he is giving those kids." Over the course of the hour, I realized I was the recipient of that gift too, and I didn't want to be any other place. Unexpectedly, Mr. J. was the instrument of Peace for me, and I was beginning to think that this Christmas might be one of my most memorable.
My prayer is that we all experience Peace, not just today. Expect it to come in unexpected ways.
Isaiah 9:6-7
6 For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
the favorite things
a few of my favorite things:
walks outside
good conversations
a glass of wine (or two!)
listening to stories of people's lives
the sound of laughter
homemade breakfast and yummy coffee
reflecting at a coffee shop
farmer's markets
cooking for potlucks
playing games (and winning!)
meeting new people
cool sunny days
worship
hospital visits
watching children play
smiling
Emmanuel
i was blessed to experience all these things this weekend. what are some of your favorite things? take time to experience them and be thankful.
walks outside
good conversations
a glass of wine (or two!)
listening to stories of people's lives
the sound of laughter
homemade breakfast and yummy coffee
reflecting at a coffee shop
farmer's markets
cooking for potlucks
playing games (and winning!)
meeting new people
cool sunny days
worship
hospital visits
watching children play
smiling
Emmanuel
i was blessed to experience all these things this weekend. what are some of your favorite things? take time to experience them and be thankful.
Sunday, December 6, 2009
the refugees
today my faith was re-affirmed. it was unexpected. i woke up this morning with my plan: church, home to write a verbatim, back to church for an hour or so for the children's "night in bethlehem" and then dinner with friends in pearland. well, my "night in bethlehem" was much more than i could have imagined, so now i know why my friend texted early this morning to re-schedule our dinner for next week. God had other plans.
let me just say that 4 rwandan refugee children lit up my world today. i met them at "bethlehem." our outreach team picked them up from across town to bring them to our church, in an effort to foster the relationships started when they helped a refugee family move into their apartment a couple of months ago. stella is a child of this said family. peace, hope and balak are children of the neighboring family whose dad was a methodist minister in rwanda. their family arrived in february after being in 3 different refugee camps across south america, kenya and samalia. peace told me that her dad tells the family that they need to keep preaching to all the refugees here because they can never forget God now that they are here. peace also loves to tell her story because she says that every time she does she knows that a little piece of her will be in someone else's heart.
i will never understand what genocide is like. i will never understand what it means to move around your whole life in order to protect your life. i will never understand why peace thinks the best part about being in the apartment with her family is that she doesn't have to be scared to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom...she finally lives in a place where she knows that no one is going to attack her or take her.
on our drive back to their apartment, i was blessed to nestle in between stella and balak as they fell asleep, one under each arm. i was blessed to listen to peace teach us how to sing "i have decided to follow jesus, no turning back, no turning back" in swahili. i was blessed to realize that God brought the two words i have been reflecting on these first two weeks in advent, "hope" and "peace" to life for me today...literally. God said, "here you go, this is what hope and peace look like." i thank God for making it so real.
i'll take God's plan over mine any day. my cup runneth over.
let me just say that 4 rwandan refugee children lit up my world today. i met them at "bethlehem." our outreach team picked them up from across town to bring them to our church, in an effort to foster the relationships started when they helped a refugee family move into their apartment a couple of months ago. stella is a child of this said family. peace, hope and balak are children of the neighboring family whose dad was a methodist minister in rwanda. their family arrived in february after being in 3 different refugee camps across south america, kenya and samalia. peace told me that her dad tells the family that they need to keep preaching to all the refugees here because they can never forget God now that they are here. peace also loves to tell her story because she says that every time she does she knows that a little piece of her will be in someone else's heart.
i will never understand what genocide is like. i will never understand what it means to move around your whole life in order to protect your life. i will never understand why peace thinks the best part about being in the apartment with her family is that she doesn't have to be scared to get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom...she finally lives in a place where she knows that no one is going to attack her or take her.
on our drive back to their apartment, i was blessed to nestle in between stella and balak as they fell asleep, one under each arm. i was blessed to listen to peace teach us how to sing "i have decided to follow jesus, no turning back, no turning back" in swahili. i was blessed to realize that God brought the two words i have been reflecting on these first two weeks in advent, "hope" and "peace" to life for me today...literally. God said, "here you go, this is what hope and peace look like." i thank God for making it so real.
i'll take God's plan over mine any day. my cup runneth over.
Friday, December 4, 2009
the snow
it snowed in houston today. all day. businesses and schools were closing like crazy. i thought for sure that i wouldn't be so lucky, but i was. in passing, ted tells me that i can leave at 2pm! however, my excitement was met with the wonderment of how i would get home...the bus doesn't start running outbound until 3:30pm.
hark! an email was sent just about that time announcing that at 12:30pm metro started their park and ride runs in response to all the early releases. a few rounds on the floors to check in with the staff, and i was off.
the snow is still coming down. i get on the rail and arrive at my bus stop at 2:20pm. it's cold. brrrr. 2:30pm comes and goes. it's still cold. oh, they're just running a little late. 2:45pm comes and goes. brrr. my gloveless hands are turning very cold. 3:00pm comes and goes. now i am getting really anxious and popsicle-like. the waiting is frustrating.
as i waited, not knowing when it was going to end, i actually thought about advent...something i've been talking about for a while...the season of waiting with anticipation...it was made real for me. i thought about how hard it is to wait. how painful it can be. but then i realized that i was waiting for something that i knew would come, and it made it a little more bearable. i knew that a bus would eventually come and take me home to a warm house with food in the refrigerator and clothes in the closet. it made me sad on two levels. i was sad that not everyone has a warm place to go on days like this. i was very aware of those across the street who were hugging the wall in hopes of finding warmth. i am praying about how i need to respond. and, i was sad that not everyone waits with such hope. i want to be a messenger of hope even more now. those moments of waiting actually turned out to be very meaningful for me.
i hope that we all find meaning in the waiting this advent.
oh, the bus finally came at 3:30pm. i am just now thawed out, smelling yummy tortilla soup, and waiting for friends to come over to play wii and bananagrams. what a gift.
hark! an email was sent just about that time announcing that at 12:30pm metro started their park and ride runs in response to all the early releases. a few rounds on the floors to check in with the staff, and i was off.
the snow is still coming down. i get on the rail and arrive at my bus stop at 2:20pm. it's cold. brrrr. 2:30pm comes and goes. it's still cold. oh, they're just running a little late. 2:45pm comes and goes. brrr. my gloveless hands are turning very cold. 3:00pm comes and goes. now i am getting really anxious and popsicle-like. the waiting is frustrating.
as i waited, not knowing when it was going to end, i actually thought about advent...something i've been talking about for a while...the season of waiting with anticipation...it was made real for me. i thought about how hard it is to wait. how painful it can be. but then i realized that i was waiting for something that i knew would come, and it made it a little more bearable. i knew that a bus would eventually come and take me home to a warm house with food in the refrigerator and clothes in the closet. it made me sad on two levels. i was sad that not everyone has a warm place to go on days like this. i was very aware of those across the street who were hugging the wall in hopes of finding warmth. i am praying about how i need to respond. and, i was sad that not everyone waits with such hope. i want to be a messenger of hope even more now. those moments of waiting actually turned out to be very meaningful for me.
i hope that we all find meaning in the waiting this advent.
oh, the bus finally came at 3:30pm. i am just now thawed out, smelling yummy tortilla soup, and waiting for friends to come over to play wii and bananagrams. what a gift.
Sunday, November 29, 2009
the thanksgiving trip
where did november go? thanksgiving has come and gone. today is the first day of advent. it's hard to believe.
i am thankful for the time i spent with family on thursday and friday. we gathered at my brother's house where we ate good food, caught up on our lives, and played lots of guess who? and rockband. yes, rockband. ryan said we had to wait until after lunch to play, and i'm pretty sure that the first beat of the drum occurred about 10 minutes after the prayer (or invocation as ryan likes to say). ryan started out on vocals, jacob on drums, and josh on guitar. it was a borderline nightmare to listen to. don't worry, i saved the day. it was quite a shining star moment. i held the vocals, ryan moved to guitar and jacob and josh worked the drums as a team...we finally made it all the way through a song without getting boo'd off the stage. you would have liked to have been there, i'm sure of it. i know we made my grandmother proud...i bet she was never so ready to return to her quiet little home at the summit.
in all seriousness, it was fun to be with my family. i spent some good time with both my dad and my mom. my brother and i had some real bonding moments. and, as always i love just playing with my nephews. there is real joy amidst the chaos and the unique coming together of people.
one other hi-light from the trip to austin: i came home with a new wii! yes, i was one of the crazy people up at 4:15am in hopes of getting a doorbuster, and it happened. a little speed walking through the store, jumping over a palette, maybe nudging a few people, and reaching to grab one of the last 5 wii's left while 4 other hands grabbed the remaining provided me with my christmas present just a little early. stephanie is starting to set it up for us as i'm typing. we are about to bust out a little wii fit/animated jillian from the biggest loser...only after i kick some booty at bowling. thanks mom for letting me bring it home!
more on advent to come...
i am thankful for the time i spent with family on thursday and friday. we gathered at my brother's house where we ate good food, caught up on our lives, and played lots of guess who? and rockband. yes, rockband. ryan said we had to wait until after lunch to play, and i'm pretty sure that the first beat of the drum occurred about 10 minutes after the prayer (or invocation as ryan likes to say). ryan started out on vocals, jacob on drums, and josh on guitar. it was a borderline nightmare to listen to. don't worry, i saved the day. it was quite a shining star moment. i held the vocals, ryan moved to guitar and jacob and josh worked the drums as a team...we finally made it all the way through a song without getting boo'd off the stage. you would have liked to have been there, i'm sure of it. i know we made my grandmother proud...i bet she was never so ready to return to her quiet little home at the summit.
in all seriousness, it was fun to be with my family. i spent some good time with both my dad and my mom. my brother and i had some real bonding moments. and, as always i love just playing with my nephews. there is real joy amidst the chaos and the unique coming together of people.
one other hi-light from the trip to austin: i came home with a new wii! yes, i was one of the crazy people up at 4:15am in hopes of getting a doorbuster, and it happened. a little speed walking through the store, jumping over a palette, maybe nudging a few people, and reaching to grab one of the last 5 wii's left while 4 other hands grabbed the remaining provided me with my christmas present just a little early. stephanie is starting to set it up for us as i'm typing. we are about to bust out a little wii fit/animated jillian from the biggest loser...only after i kick some booty at bowling. thanks mom for letting me bring it home!
more on advent to come...
Saturday, November 7, 2009
the retreat
required event for ordination: singles clergy retreat. sounded like a nightmare to me at first. i prayed it was not 2 days focused on "embracing your singleness" and/or how the church "needs" people like us. they wouldn't have been ready for all my emotions, i'm sure of it.
opening worship: the preacher said something to the effect of "i didn't realize until i got here that i was preaching to single CLERGY. i have actually never thought about how hard it must be for you all." note: the tone was of sheer surprise...not that he didn't know who we were, but simply that we ARE single clergy...it was like he had never thought about US before...all of the sudden i was put in a category. that was exactly what i did not want to highlight for 2 days. i silently cried throughout most of the sermon.
praise the lord. in comes dr. jo bailey wells, one of my professors from duke. she was our speaker for the retreat. she never once made me think about my singleness in the way i did during that first hour. she was there to lead us through isaiah's call story. she was there on behalf of God to teach us about God's holiness, confession, forgiveness, to help me reaffirm my call into full-time ministry, and to lead me in a time of renewal of mind, body and spirit. literally, my mind was renewed through the in depth, yet devotional study on isaiah 6:1-8. my body was renewed through a long walk amidst the trees and around the lake and through a game of tennis. my spirit was renewed through the fellowship of good friends, the intentional prayer time, the music and a game of bananagrams, my new FAVORITE game!
the retreat reminded me once again about how important it is to schedule times of retreat. maybe we can't all take 2 days away, but we can start with a small increment of time each day.
below are some of the creative writings i wrote on the retreat. the first one is my attempt to capture my vision of God. jo told us that "holy" is used to describe God. in the time of the writers, saying a word 2x in a row was the superlative. so, holy, holy would have been supreme holiness. however, in an attempt to express God's holiness as beyond the superlative, they wrote it 3x...a super superlative! beyond our imagination.
A Vision of God
Holy, Holy, Holy
Sitting on a throne
Yet filling the earth.
Holy, Holy, Holy
Listening to our cries
Yet desiring to be heard.
Holy, Holy, Holy
Limiting my insight
Yet revealing graciously.
the second one i wrote was trying to capture my confession. we were lead into a time of confession the second night, where we all spoke our confession aloud in front of the group...eyes closed, heads bowed. after the confessions, we sung "kyrie elesion" which translates, "lord, have mercy."
A Confession
Isaiah’s gift was speaking
Yet he had unclean lips.
Isaiah confesses.
God forgives with the
Touch of live coals.
My gift is listening
Yet I have prideful ears.
I confess.
God forgives with the
Sound of the Kyrie.
the last one i wrote is pretty self explanatory, i hope.
The Safest Place
The sailor’s storm
Finds her at sea
Longing for the harbor
To be safe.
Yet tossing the cargo
And riding the waves
Tied to the Mast
Is the safest place.
opening worship: the preacher said something to the effect of "i didn't realize until i got here that i was preaching to single CLERGY. i have actually never thought about how hard it must be for you all." note: the tone was of sheer surprise...not that he didn't know who we were, but simply that we ARE single clergy...it was like he had never thought about US before...all of the sudden i was put in a category. that was exactly what i did not want to highlight for 2 days. i silently cried throughout most of the sermon.
praise the lord. in comes dr. jo bailey wells, one of my professors from duke. she was our speaker for the retreat. she never once made me think about my singleness in the way i did during that first hour. she was there to lead us through isaiah's call story. she was there on behalf of God to teach us about God's holiness, confession, forgiveness, to help me reaffirm my call into full-time ministry, and to lead me in a time of renewal of mind, body and spirit. literally, my mind was renewed through the in depth, yet devotional study on isaiah 6:1-8. my body was renewed through a long walk amidst the trees and around the lake and through a game of tennis. my spirit was renewed through the fellowship of good friends, the intentional prayer time, the music and a game of bananagrams, my new FAVORITE game!
the retreat reminded me once again about how important it is to schedule times of retreat. maybe we can't all take 2 days away, but we can start with a small increment of time each day.
below are some of the creative writings i wrote on the retreat. the first one is my attempt to capture my vision of God. jo told us that "holy" is used to describe God. in the time of the writers, saying a word 2x in a row was the superlative. so, holy, holy would have been supreme holiness. however, in an attempt to express God's holiness as beyond the superlative, they wrote it 3x...a super superlative! beyond our imagination.
A Vision of God
Holy, Holy, Holy
Sitting on a throne
Yet filling the earth.
Holy, Holy, Holy
Listening to our cries
Yet desiring to be heard.
Holy, Holy, Holy
Limiting my insight
Yet revealing graciously.
the second one i wrote was trying to capture my confession. we were lead into a time of confession the second night, where we all spoke our confession aloud in front of the group...eyes closed, heads bowed. after the confessions, we sung "kyrie elesion" which translates, "lord, have mercy."
A Confession
Isaiah’s gift was speaking
Yet he had unclean lips.
Isaiah confesses.
God forgives with the
Touch of live coals.
My gift is listening
Yet I have prideful ears.
I confess.
God forgives with the
Sound of the Kyrie.
the last one i wrote is pretty self explanatory, i hope.
The Safest Place
The sailor’s storm
Finds her at sea
Longing for the harbor
To be safe.
Yet tossing the cargo
And riding the waves
Tied to the Mast
Is the safest place.
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