A Beautiful Mosaic

Some days sear into your memory without permission from your will or desire. Their eventual impact unbeknownst at the time somehow speaks its value to your heart for later: "Remember..this." And so, later... once God's wonderful and beautiful plans have begun to unfold before your eyes you are able to remember...where it all began. The moment He ufirst whispered. Your gut-wrench, human reaction that almost sealed the deal in itself, and then His fingerprints. They are illuminated in retrospect like a lantern-laced moonlit path. God's direction, His leadership in our lives as we turn our hearts to Him is a process. It's a flash of lightning followed by a slow misty sunrise. And then it's shining through, exposed like the midday sun to my eyes...clarity to a wondering heart, sight to blind eyes. Several days in the last few months, even last few years have been seared into my soul. And now, what feels like miles down the road, I am standing looking down a lant

I covet your prayers tomorrow in several ways. Though I rarely can share details, I know there are so many of you who pray anyway. Here is what I can ask: -Please pray for God's presence to be felt in my and Michael's life and the life of our girls. -Please pray for me to move within His rhythms and according to His will in the variety of situations going on. -Pray for a sensitivity to the Spirit and wisdom and understanding through His love. You can also pray for the new houseparents on our campus who are here as a direct response to God's call and start training this week!

There could not have been another thing she could have done to annoy me more.  There were no buttons left to push.  All attempts to uncover an ounce of motivation were futile.  I was a rubberband, and if I was stretched one more millimeter, I would snap.  I needed my lovely 8 hour break in my bed from talking to her, looking at her, thinking about her.  Except I had to get in the big old van and drive to pick her up, which would require at least 5 minutes in the van alone for some good old (but honestly, undesired) one-on-one time.  And so, as my hands gripped the smooth rubber of the steering wheel, and my breath exhaled slowly and loudly into the empty space, I became very direct with the Lord. You're going to have to show me, God.   I pressed the bar down signalling my left blinker toward the high school where she was attending an activity.  Show me all the things that I can love in her and show me what I can do to express that love in a way that she will understand.  Bec

We had a new family teaching / houseparenting couple interviewing on campus this last week and I have been mulling over one of their questions since I left the meeting.  "What is the most important contributor to success and longevity as a family teacher here?"  Essentially, what is the most crucial element to thriving for the long haul in this role in this place?  Everyone was quick to provide extremely helpful tips that have helped me acclimate and survive my first year as a houseparent at Vera Lloyd, but I found myself going back to the same seemingly cliche answer over and over again in my mind: CONFIDENCE IN THE CALL OF THE LORD Because when I am confident in the call I recieved from the Lord to be here with His hands and feet attached to my own limbs, then a bad day or extemrely difficult moment within that ministry becomes a part of the sanctifying story God is writing in me rather than another contributing factor to a resignation letter I could be writing.  When I