Moments that changed my life, Part 5

2001.

It was one of the most life-changing years of my life.  I don't have time to write about every event and how it affected me, but I will list just some of the things that occurred.

*I finished my first year of teaching
*My sister-in-law was diagnosed with MS
*I got my heart broken
* I was in a pretty serious car accident
*My sister had to have a major surgery
*My grandfather's health continued to falter
*I quit my first teaching job
*I got another job teaching, but this time in Indiana
*I moved back to Indiana
*I lived on my own for the very first time
*I began to help with the youth at Chapel Hill
*I met  David
*9/11 occurred


Needless to say, it was a pretty traumatic year.  Through all of the ups and downs, I learned that the only constant in my life is God.  As soon as I start to rely on anything or anyone more than Him, I lose focus and direction. 2001 was a hard year for me.  But as I look back on it now with some perspective, I am so thankful for the hard years, because those are the times when God really molded me and shaped me.

I am, by nature, a very social person.  I love to be around people.  I can't imagine having a job or career where I wouldn't get to interact with people on a daily basis.  But sometimes my social tendencies made me uncomfortable being alone.  2001 was a year where I learned that my God is enough.  And so many positive things have come out of those events, that I can't help but to be thankful for it all.  The good and the bad.  The highs and the lows.

If you are reading this, you might be having a year like the one I just listed.  You might be feeling like you are getting slammed with one crazy thing after another.  Let me encourage you that God is still in control and He has a plan, even if you have no idea what it is.  Even if we never find out what it is, He has a plan.

Moments that changed my life, Part 4

Besides going to a Christian college, I also attended Illinois State University for 2 years.  (Don't stop to do the math, because it will be very clear that it took me much longer than 4 years to finish school).  And while I was so thankful for my time at a Christian college, I do not think I would have been as prepared to teach in the public school setting if it had not been for my time at ISU.

Going to ISU was my wake up call.  I found out very quickly that what I believed was not what everyone else believed.  While I was on my own at Lincoln, I was REALLY on my own at ISU.  There was no curfew, no rules about where I lived, no RA's to look out for me.  And while I did not always make the best decisions, I learned how to be a light in the darkness for God.  Two events stand out in my mind vividly. The first was when I chose not to attend a play that my drama class was supposed to go to.  I did not feel like the subject matter was appropriate, and I really felt like it was an opportunity for me to share with my professor about my faith.  The second event was when I casually mentioned that I was a virgin to another classmate on the way to class.  She was dumbfounded, saying she did not have any friends who were still virgins.  Ha!

Beyond the actual university experience, going to ISU was the first place where I lived in an apartment.  I cannot begin to recount the stories of the fun we had at 2412 Clearwater.  In total, 9 girls rotated through there, and it was such a crazy time!  I made lifelong friends, created memories, had some of the best conversations of my life, and learned a lot about heartache as well.  I won't go into detail, but I did get my heart broken during this time.  It was one of the hardest times of my life, but I will always remember the support of my friends as well as learning about leaning on God above all others.

Every experience is for a reason, and I am so thankful that I got to attend both a Christian college and a university!  Go Redbirds!

Full Circle

Noel on his very first day of preschool, September 2009

Noel on his very last day of preschool, May 2012

It has truly been a wonderful experience for Noel to go to Chapel Hill Preschool.  Fortunately, we get to keep him there one more year, as he is headed to kindergarten there in the fall. I am very thankful for the guidance, love, lessons, fun, and example the teachers, aids, and director have given Noel.  I'm not gonna lie that it is a little bittersweet, but I want to enjoy and embrace every season of Noel's life.  Onward and upward!  Ha!

Thursday Thank yous

This week I am thankful for. . .

551. the fact that my kids love hip-hop/dance music.

552. seeing my Bridges kids one last time at their awards program tonight.  So proud of them.

553. my Mothers Day gift:  JUST DANCE!!  We have been getting our groove on around here.  (And yes, I know Just Dance came out like 10 years ago, but I catch on slowly, okay?)

554. going to the zoo with the kiddos and some friends.  Great time.

555. the impending arrival of my husband from a business trip.  It's 8:33 pm as I write this, and he is supposed to be home at 9:00. It's the last few hours that go by the slowest.

556. leftovers.

557. a wonderful school year for Noel.  He has had such wonderful teachers at Chapel Hill, and we are so thankful that he sees school in a positive light and that he has gotten to learn in a Christian environment.

558. God working out a new place for me to serve that I'm super excited about.

559. getting a sweet, romantic text from David on the anniversary of the day he proposed.

560. the knowledge that we have hope, even when we are in the midst of discouragement.  A couple of my friends are really going through some trials, and yet they are relying on God to carry them through.  What an inspiration to all of us!

What are you thankful for?

Moments that changed my life, part 3

Because Mothers' Day is coming up, I am incredibly tempted to write about how becoming a mom has changed my life.  But I'm trying to write these "moments" in chronological order, so just bear with me until I get there.

Moments that changed my life, part 3:  Going to a Christian College

As long as I can remember, I knew I wanted to go to college.  I didn't know what I wanted to do (still don't, some days), but I knew that college would be in my future.  Between my sophomore and junior years in high school, my youth minister's wife told me about Lincoln Christian College.  At the time they held a summer music camp for high school students.  On a whim, I went.  All by myself.

I knew nobody.

I had no idea what I was doing.

And I had the time of my life.

We sang and learned a musical, but more importantly I got to know some of the students from Lincoln and see a little glimpse of what college life was like in at a small Christian school.  By the end of  summer camp, I knew that a Christian college was the right fit for me.

I went to Lincoln for 3 1/2 years.  I was a business major for two years, and after spending a summer at church camps with junior and senior high school students, I knew that I had to change my major to education.  I took a lot of flak for that, and I had to stay in school a lot longer than planned, but if was all worth it.

I ended up with a Bachelor's Degree in Bible from Lincoln (so if you need a licensed Sunday School teacher, I'm your man!), and I finished up my Bachelor's Degree in English from Illinois State University. (Don't worry, my next "moment" post will be about going to a state school as well. . .)

Here are just some of the ways going to a Christian school affected me:

*amazing opportunities to serve, locally and globally
*taught by some of the most amazing people I have ever me
*made some of the best friends I ever had
*saw how I fit into God's plan

More than anything, going to Lincoln gave me a foundation that I did not have before I left for school.  Before that, I went to church because it was the right thing to do.  I read the Bible because I knew I was supposed to. But I didn't really connect how God was working in my life to change others.

I am forever thankful that I went to Lincoln.  It helped prepare me for my lifelong journey with God, and I would recommend it to anyone who is looking to go to a Christian college.

Moments that changed my life, part 2

My parents have been married for 49 years.  Not once have I ever questioned their love for each other or their love for me.

The older I get, the more I realize that this is a significant part to who I am as a person.  I work with students who range from 6th grade to college age.  I have seen so many kids who deal with stuff they shouldn't have to, and one of those is parents who either fight all of the time or who are divorced/separated and put the child in the middle.  Instead of home being a place for fond memories, home is sometimes where a child least wants to be.

I understand that sometimes divorce is inevitable.  I know from experience that you can't control what the other person in the marriage does.  I understand that step-parents can be a blessing.  I truly believe that God gives us second chances in every area of our lives.

But I also understand that there are a lot of hurting children because their parents choose to make selfish decisions.  When a girl I know doesn't want to go home because mom is drunk and dad doesn't want to come get her, my heart breaks. I have had numerous conversations with students whose dads promised to be there for something special, only to bail at the last minute.

Being a parent is easy.  Being a GOOD parent is not.

By no means am I an awesome parent every day.  And I am the first one sometimes to point out my parents' flaws (too much, actually), but the more I spend time with students who don't have the home life they need, I am more and more thankful that I never had to experience that in my family.  And the more and more determined I am to show students the love and encouragement they need that they might not be getting from home.

new food hits and misses

I don't have a lot of time to write tonight, but I wanted to share two new developments in my "new food" adventure of 2012.

#1 Mustard Greens.  I tried braising them with some bacon, sugar, chicken broth, and vinegar.  They were okay, but not near as good as kale.  Not sure mustard greens will ever make another appearance at our house.

#2 Okay, promise you won't laugh. . .

Well, you can go ahead and laugh, but I must say that it was rather tasty.

Here's the story:

My mom has decided that she is going gluten-free.  I love that she is taking steps to make her life more healthy, and I really love that she deiced to get rid of everything in her entire pantry that has gluten in it.  Thanks to her we have 5 or 6 boxes of pasta and this little gem called Shake 'n Bake.

For the record, I have never used Shake 'n Bake, but I figured it's worth a try.  Instead of coating entire chicken breasts, I cut the chicken into small, nugget-esque pieces and coated them.  Wouldn't you know it?  My kids thought they were honest-to-goodness chicken nuggets.  Ate the whole plate of them.  Now, I know Shake 'n Bake is my no means an all natural product, but it has to be better than the pink slime they put in McDonald's Chicken Nuggets.  Baby steps.  Baby steps.

And if you have stuck with me for this entire post (which is much longer than I originally intended), you receive a handsome reward:

Does anyone out there love this as much as I do?  How come the Brady Bunch isn't on TV anywhere?  My kids need to see it!

So, what have you all been eating?

Moments that changed my life, part 1

I have been filled with nostalgia lately.  I think it's a combo of putting the house up for sale, getting ready for Noel to go to kindergarten, and finishing up the school year with my students.  I've been thinking a lot about the way my life has been shaped and changed.  So, I have decided to start blogging about my past and see what happens.  I have creatively and uniquely names this:  "Moments that changed my life".  I know, I know, how am I not a published author yet?

Anyway. . .part 1:  Growing up in my neighborhood

Until I left for college I had the same address:  3200 Revere Street.  (Don't worry, stalkers, my parents don't live there anymore!).  I lived in a little neighborhood of about 60 houses or so called Holiday Park.  When I was in grade school I could have told you who lived in every house.  It was so much fun to grow up in that neighborhood.  Riding bikes was a daily ritual from March until October.  We knew which house had the good candy on Halloween.  And you never did anything without Mrs. Bell finding out about it.

Here are some moments that will always stand out in my mind from living in that neighborhood:

*playing in my best friends' back yards (none of our parents would let us come in and wreck their house--although I do remember sneaking in to Chiandra's house while her mom was gone & of course we got busted.)

*daring each other to walk up to the abandoned house on the corner.  So many great, scary stories passed down about that house that I'm sure were never true.  ("I heard there's a ghost who haunts the upstairs. . .")

*making up dance/ballet routines and performing them for our moms.

*riding the school bus with my friends

*camp outs that always ended up with us all inside.

*adventures to the neighborhood across the street, because it had a creek, making it exponentially cooler.

*getting picked on my the older neighborhood kids.

*wrecking my bike the day before the start of middle school.  Nothing makes a girl feel more confident than a big scab on her forehead!

*trying to drive my first car up the hill in the yard instead of the driveway.  Not a smart choice.  Not. At. All.

Mostly, I just remember that in the midst of the chaos my family was going through, I found shelter in the safety of my neighborhood.  Having siblings who were much older than me, I would have been all by myself most of the time, but thanks to living where I did, I didn't have to be.  It was simple, but so much fun.

What memories of growing up do you have that you cherish?

Thursday Thank Yous

This week I am thankful for. . .

541. homemade waffles.

542. forgiveness.

543. hard-but-necessary conversations.

544. healthy bodies.

545. my guitar.

546.  my brother and sister.

547. answered prayers for a friend.

548. people who read and respond to my writing.

549. all of the beauty of spring:  flowers blooming, grass growing, birds crashing into my window every morning!

550. God's provisions every day.  It might not always be what I want, but it is always what I need.

What are you thankful for?

I wish Rob Bell was right. . .but he's not.

I just finished reading the book Erasing Hell by Francis Chan. It is such a well-written book, and I cannot recommend it enough to any believer out there.  A while back, Rob Bell wrote a book called Love Wins, in which he basically says that "hell" is all of the terrible things people have to face here on earth.  According to Bell, each of us will get as many tries as it takes until we finally come to accept Jesus as Lord.  What all of this means specifically, I cannot tell you.  

But I wish he was right.

I wish that I could sleep at night knowing that every person will eventually end up in heaven.

The only problem is: this isn't what the Bible says.

Most of Chan's new book is looking specifically at what the Bible says about hell and (most importantly) what that means for us.  For some reason, when Rob Bell wrote his book, it struck a nerve with many Christians.  People were all up in arms, calling him a Universalist and writing him off.

And while I think Rob Bell was wrong in his book Love Wins, aren't we just as bad?

I believe hell is real.  I believe that those who don't have the forgiveness of Jesus will be there after they die.  And yet most days I do nothing to change that.

Isn't that worse??

I can't stand for someone to say they don't believe in hell, but I will stand by and watch thousand of lost souls continue on the path towards hell without doing anything about it.

The truth is that yes, hell is real, AND yes, I need to do everything I can, not to scare people out of hell, but to share the amazing gift of forgiveness, healing, hope, and eternity we have been offered in Jesus.  If I can't do that, then what do my actions really say about my beliefs?

I am a pretty open person.  If something is bothering me, I'm going to talk to someone about it.  If I am excited about something, I will probably talk about it with everyone I see.  How come I don't have that same attitude about heaven and hell?  It should bother me--rock me to the core--that so many people don't know the love of God.  There are still whole people groups with no Bible, for crying out loud.  And I should be so excited about my salvation that I share it with everyone I see.  Not in an annoying, in your face way, but the same way I share anything else I am passionate about.

I hope that if you are reading this that you know about God's love and forgiveness.  If you don't, please ask me about Him.  And if you do, please tell someone else about it.