The recurring theme in my life lately seems to be a reminder that nothing lasts forever. This is a good thing sometimes and sometimes it feels very sad. But either way it is something to help as we go along.
I remember when my kids were all little and John's mom lived with us. We had several years when we wondered if we were ever going to be able to sleep through the whole night again. Teething, chicken pox, kids with colds, endless laundry (ok, so that hasn't slowed down all that much...we just don't do diapers any more!) But here we are- John's mom is in heaven and our babies have grown. In fact, now I'm wishing we had more time. Jess and Luke are just a couple of years out from heading off to college. The trips they've taken lately have meant a much different atmosphere around our house. We miss them. I think of all the things I had intended to teach them. Time seems really short.
So when I think of having our departure delayed yet again, I remind myself that this transition won't last forever. We'll be in Verona soon. I can be patient with this for a while longer. When I think of the kids heading out, I hope this reminder will motivate me to prioritize well and teach them what I can while I can. I hope it reminds me that the people around me won't always be able to make a choice for salvation.
Oh, and the statement isn't exactlytrue. One of these days Jesus is coming back and we're heading home, where we get to be with him FOREVER. I'm glad that's what will last.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Church Camp!!
A couple of weeks Brandon and I worked at a week of 5th and 6th grade church camp. We were the "camp missionaries" for the week. We got to share with the kids about Italy and what we'll be doing in Verona. We also got a chance to make some good connections and gained a few prayer partners in the process.
We had lots of fun with our presentations. We tried to make it as interesting and fun as possible. Our favorite thing we did was game we like to call "Spaghetti Face". We dyed spaghetti about 5 different colors and let the kids through it at two of the counselors faces. They loved it! It made a giant mess though and the kids kept stealing it off the stage to keep it. One of the children's ministers there said that on Sunday after camp a mother of one of the campers came up to her and told her he son came home with a really stinky suitcase. When she started going through it she find a giant wad of colored spaghetti! Our game was a hit, so much so the kids wanted souvenirs!
The best thing about the week to me is getting to know the kids and just be around them. I love it...which is good since I am filling the role of children's minister on the Verona team. I can't wait to get to know the children of Verona and see how God uses me to reach them. I'm sure it will be frustrating at times and wonderful at other times but one things for sure, with kids it is always going to be interesting!
-Savannah
We had lots of fun with our presentations. We tried to make it as interesting and fun as possible. Our favorite thing we did was game we like to call "Spaghetti Face". We dyed spaghetti about 5 different colors and let the kids through it at two of the counselors faces. They loved it! It made a giant mess though and the kids kept stealing it off the stage to keep it. One of the children's ministers there said that on Sunday after camp a mother of one of the campers came up to her and told her he son came home with a really stinky suitcase. When she started going through it she find a giant wad of colored spaghetti! Our game was a hit, so much so the kids wanted souvenirs!
The best thing about the week to me is getting to know the kids and just be around them. I love it...which is good since I am filling the role of children's minister on the Verona team. I can't wait to get to know the children of Verona and see how God uses me to reach them. I'm sure it will be frustrating at times and wonderful at other times but one things for sure, with kids it is always going to be interesting!
-Savannah
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Hocus Pocus
When Ann and I were in Louisville for Launch not too long ago, we had the pleasure of attending Shivcly CC. The gentleman who was doing the communion meditation shared with us the origins of the phrase hocus pocus. Now, any true Harry Potter fan (and you know who you are) surely knows the current meaning of hocus pocus. It is, today, simply a meaningless phrase used by a magician to confuse or distract his audience so that they do not see what is really happening. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain, Dorothy ... (That was for you, Brandi!)
But the probable origin of this phrase is what is most interesting. Most likely it comes from Roman Catholic masses during the time of communion when the priest would quote in Latin the words of Christ, "This is (my) body...," "hoc est (enim) corpus (meum)." Of course, most of us are familiar with the Catholic teaching of transubstantiation, whereby the wafer of bread, upon the utterance of these words, is believed to become the actually body of Jesus. It is likewise taught in Catholicism that the wine becomes the actual blood of Jesus. To the layperson of years gone by, it may have seemed that the words spoken by the priest were magic and in themselves had the power to conjure up God himself! Of course, perhaps it was quite the opposite. Perhaps, seeing no real change to the wafer and wine, they felt the priest's usage of "hoc est corpus" was merely to confuse or distract them so that they wouldn't realize that no change actually took place. This phrase was later corrupted into "hocus pocus."
As you may have noticed, I really get into word origins. Did you know that "hokey pokey," "hanky panky," and "hoax," all are of the same derivation? I think that's cool.
But, what's the point? (Ok, I'm pulling a Brandon...what is the point? Oh, here, I've got one!) There is no magic in communion. No magic in the crucifixion. Or is there? How about the magic of unconditional love. The magic of grace. The magic of God dying for me? Ok, maybe magic isn't the right word, but it is definitely supernatural. It's definitely a miracle beyond comprehension, explanation, and understanding.
That's what we have to share with the people of Italy, from whence came this hocus pocus. We have the truth. The reality. We have the genuine Christ, and him crucified, to share with the Italian people. I can't wait to get there to fulfill the calling God has for me.
But the probable origin of this phrase is what is most interesting. Most likely it comes from Roman Catholic masses during the time of communion when the priest would quote in Latin the words of Christ, "This is (my) body...," "hoc est (enim) corpus (meum)." Of course, most of us are familiar with the Catholic teaching of transubstantiation, whereby the wafer of bread, upon the utterance of these words, is believed to become the actually body of Jesus. It is likewise taught in Catholicism that the wine becomes the actual blood of Jesus. To the layperson of years gone by, it may have seemed that the words spoken by the priest were magic and in themselves had the power to conjure up God himself! Of course, perhaps it was quite the opposite. Perhaps, seeing no real change to the wafer and wine, they felt the priest's usage of "hoc est corpus" was merely to confuse or distract them so that they wouldn't realize that no change actually took place. This phrase was later corrupted into "hocus pocus."
As you may have noticed, I really get into word origins. Did you know that "hokey pokey," "hanky panky," and "hoax," all are of the same derivation? I think that's cool.
But, what's the point? (Ok, I'm pulling a Brandon...what is the point? Oh, here, I've got one!) There is no magic in communion. No magic in the crucifixion. Or is there? How about the magic of unconditional love. The magic of grace. The magic of God dying for me? Ok, maybe magic isn't the right word, but it is definitely supernatural. It's definitely a miracle beyond comprehension, explanation, and understanding.
That's what we have to share with the people of Italy, from whence came this hocus pocus. We have the truth. The reality. We have the genuine Christ, and him crucified, to share with the Italian people. I can't wait to get there to fulfill the calling God has for me.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Cars...
I am currently having car trouble. I have been having car trouble since August of last year. It is the same problem, and I have taken it in to get fixed five times now. Everytime I take it in I am so excited to get it back and not have to worry about it anymore, and then alas the problem comes back. What is this probem you may ask? Well, once the care goes over 60 mph (which means this probloem happens exclusively on busy interstates) something happens that makes the car completely stall out once it goes back down below 20 mph. This means that everytime we get off of an exit, I have to pop the car into neutral and coast it onto the shoulder where we sit for 5-10 minutes.
After that the car starts like it has no problem and then we repeat the same thing. It gets really interesting if we are on a toll road or if we get into stop and go traffic on the highway. When we go on road trips I am a nervous mess the whole time (like the 22 hour roundtrip we just took to go to a week of church camp). So after hudreds of dollars this problem is still going on. I just got it "fixed" the most recent before we left for our most recent adventure, and yet somehow I was still coasting off exits with a car that was turned off.
Partially, I just wanted to rant about how annoying this is and send it out into cyberspace for some mental catharsis. In fact, when I started typing this, my only plan was to vent and I had no real plans to connect this story as an illustration for the Christian life. However, as i was e-complaining I was thinking about this, and my car kind of reminds me of the lost, the people that we will try to reach in Italy. When you don't have God you know something is wrong with you, you know something is missing. You can try to diagnose this problem a million different ways. Maybe you would feel better if you finally found that special someone, or if you had a better job, if you settled down and had some kids. Some people try to solve their problem with dangerous things like illicit drug use, casual sex, unhealthy addictions of all shapes and sizes. All of these things will always have the same result. You will think you are fixed, and that everything is finally going to go well, but it won't, and you will be coasting onto the shoulder of the next exit. God is the only fix. He is the only one who can restore our fallen lives and our broken bodies. I'm beginning to think he is the only hope for my car as well.
-Brandon
After that the car starts like it has no problem and then we repeat the same thing. It gets really interesting if we are on a toll road or if we get into stop and go traffic on the highway. When we go on road trips I am a nervous mess the whole time (like the 22 hour roundtrip we just took to go to a week of church camp). So after hudreds of dollars this problem is still going on. I just got it "fixed" the most recent before we left for our most recent adventure, and yet somehow I was still coasting off exits with a car that was turned off.
Partially, I just wanted to rant about how annoying this is and send it out into cyberspace for some mental catharsis. In fact, when I started typing this, my only plan was to vent and I had no real plans to connect this story as an illustration for the Christian life. However, as i was e-complaining I was thinking about this, and my car kind of reminds me of the lost, the people that we will try to reach in Italy. When you don't have God you know something is wrong with you, you know something is missing. You can try to diagnose this problem a million different ways. Maybe you would feel better if you finally found that special someone, or if you had a better job, if you settled down and had some kids. Some people try to solve their problem with dangerous things like illicit drug use, casual sex, unhealthy addictions of all shapes and sizes. All of these things will always have the same result. You will think you are fixed, and that everything is finally going to go well, but it won't, and you will be coasting onto the shoulder of the next exit. God is the only fix. He is the only one who can restore our fallen lives and our broken bodies. I'm beginning to think he is the only hope for my car as well.
-Brandon
Sunday, July 6, 2008
Reply from Dorthy!
You know at the beginning of the movie when Dorthy's house gets picked up into a tornado, which eventually led her to the land of Oz? Well, right now, my life is a whirling tornado. Even though I feel this certain way; it will lead me to the Land of Oz eventually. Life is not easy, it can feel like a tornado or it might be as joyful as the sounds of singing munchkins from munchkin land. All in all, the Lord is the same and never changes! That's encouraging to me.
For now, I will leave you with a scripture that pops into my mind when I don't have control and feel like a tornado is making my life one big pile of debris.
Habakkuk 3:17-19
Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
The Sovereign LORD is my strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
he enables me to go on the heights.
For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.
Have a great week!
Brandi Shea Davis
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
