Settling in

Well, after a whirlwind of packing and sorting, unpacking and resorting, cleaning, cleaning, and um. . . . cleaning(!) we are settling in to our new house.

*Sidenote:  If this were a really good blog, there would be pictures right now of our new house, but since I can't find the cord to hook the camera's memory card in, that is not happening.  However, I HAVE taken pictures, so it's a small step in the right direction.

So far, we are really liking our new place and the area.  I am kind of going through Meijer withdrawels, since it's now a 20 minute drive there instead of a 90 second drive.  But we are all adjusting.  Being out in the country is so nice and peaceful.  I went for my first run on Saturday, and it was beautiful (the scenery, not the run--THAT was ugly).  Our neighbors are really nice, and the kids have even made some friends.

I was curious how Noel and Elise would feel about leaving the only house they knew, but surprisingly, they didn't really care.  They were so excited about having new rooms right across from each other and getting to ride on  lawn tractor that nothing else mattered.  The third or fourth night we were here, Noel shuffles over to me and says, "I like our new house.  I really do."  And that pretty much sealed the deal for me.

I am trying to make every moment count with my children, and through this move one of my goals was to teach that stuff is just stuff.  We have some of it (too much, honestly), but we can't hang on to it too tightly.  It doesn't matter in the end.

I'm also settling in to my new "work" opportunities.  On Thursday I tutor in the mornings at The Crossing, which is an alternative school for high school students looking to get their diploma.  It has been such a great experience so far.  Most of it involves one-on-one work with students who are taking classes through a computer-based program.  There are lots of different reasons a student is at The Crossing, but almost all of them have realized in some way that education is essential, and so getting through their classes takes on a whole new meaning.  I especially enjoy the "family time" they have in the middle of classes, where we sit and have some great discussions about life, God, goals, struggles, and triumphs.  I feel blessed to be a part of it.

I've been reading through Genesis these past few weeks, and every time I do I take something different away.  This morning I read about how God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, his son, and because he was willing to do it, God blessed him.  To be honest, I still can't really explain this passage, but it does convict me to make sure that everything---everything is second in  comparison to God.  I think about how 6 years ago I left the only career I knew, teaching, to stay home with my kids.  It was really hard for me, but I knew that for us it was the right decision.  And now I see so many blessings that have come from me giving up my comfort for the unknown.  If I hadn't done that, I would not be a part of The Crossing or Bridges.  I wouldn't have had these amazing times with my children.  Has it all been good?  Of course not.  But has it been worth it? Yes.

I don't know what God has asked you to give up or give over, and I can't begin to say I understand, because each of us is unique, but I do know that the times I do surrender are the times God uses me the most.

May God find ways to use each of us today.

Change is good. . .right?

I feel like I haven't written a blog post in forever, which is almost true.  And this will be my only post for at least a week, as we won't have internet after tomorrow for a while.  We are in the process of moving to another house.  We're about 60% moved in there, but there is no hot water, so we've still been living at our old house until the gas gets turned on.  So life is a little crazy.  When I am at our old house I can't find the stuff I need, and when I'm at the new house I have no idea where to put the stuff I have.

First world problems, right?  Too much stuff!!

Oh, and there's that whole thing of Noel starting kindergarten tomorrow and Elise starting preschool on Thursday.

I"m in a little bit of an overwhelmed state.

But I know it's good.  I know God is good, and I trust in Him.  If Noah can live on an ark for a year, I can live out of boxes for a few weeks.

And so if you don't hear from me, I'm not dead. I may be lost trying to find my way out of the construction by my new house, though, so give me a call. . .

Heroes and Villians

Forgive me if I have written this before.  I am getting old and forgetful.  Plus, I'm just too lazy to read all of my old posts and see if I've ever written this before.

So, stick with me.

Something has happened in the last, oh, 10 years or so.  I believe it is partially due to our media overkill of every topic/event/person, etc. But it seems to be in every area of life now.

Heroes and Villians.

We tend to move people into one of those categories.  It starts with movies.  Are you Team Edward or Team Jacob?  (of course, Jacob for me.  But I digress).  And then it moves to celebrities.  When a celebrity couple gets divorced, we immediately pick a side of who is amazingly wonderful (Katie Holmes) and who caused so much trouble that we can't stand them (Tom Cruise).  Although he hadn't been a villian before, even though he had left 2 previous wives (and children) for younger women.  But TomKat was sooooo in love!  And don't get me started on the Olympics!  I even caught myself cheering for the Russian gymnasts to fall off the balance beam last night, for crying out loud!

And all of this is kind of fun and silly (kind of).

And then we turn to the elections.  All of a sudden, if you vote for Obama, you are a socialist.  If you are a Republican you hate gay people.  Mitch Daniels is the devil.  No, wait, he's the best governor ever.  No, wait.

See what I mean?

I don't want to get into political arguments on my blog.  But I want to remind everyone that people are just that:  people.  They are not perfect, but they also aren't evil either (for the most part).  Do I agree with everything our President has done these past 4 years?  No.  Do I think he is out to destroy our country?  Absolutely not!

And then this gets really personal when it is our friends and family.

We have somehow taken this hero/villian mentality and moved it to our personal relationships.  We find out that someone said something a little unkind about our family or one of our friends.  Immediately they are a villian.  "Oh, I always knew they were like that!" "I never trusted them for a minute!"  Or we take someone's word and follow them, even though what they are doing is completely wrong and hurtful. We fail to address problems because we don't want to turn into the villian.

But I want to remind all 3 of you who read this that the only villian is the devil, and the only hero is Jesus.  None of us is perfect.  None of us has never hurt a person or said something mean or done something out of selfish motivation.  But none of us is completely evil and hoping for the worst.

And this has given me some perspective in the past few days, as I am struggling with some disappointments in some people.  The easier thing would be to write them off and say, "I'm done with them." But is that what God wants me to do? To make them a villian?  God wants me to forgive.  To make things peaceful.  To build bridges, not burn them.

To pray for those who are hard to love.

Will you join me?