Search This Blog

Monday 16 August 2010

Blogs, Sheds, Friends and Anticipated Finishings

So what exactly is a blog? What is its purpose? I thought about that today as I sat down to write our latest entry. This is what I came up with...

A blog is a journal that you willingly allow everyone to see.

A blog is a way of keeping up with your hectice life... how you were feeling when you did this... what was on your heart when you did that.

A blog is a way of writing one hundred letters simultaneously because whoever you send it to gets an update on your life, what they can pray for and in some way maybe it also serves to encourage others who have the same ups and downs, joys and struggles.

I don't think Alan has ever written a blog. Actually I think I can safely say he has not. He checked his facebook last night for the first time in six months only to see he had 24 friend requests and numerous messages and notifications gone unread.

My husband is to technology what I am to his shed. He asked me the other day whether I wanted to organize it for him (again) and I said, "absolutely and without a doubt, no". You see I've begun to see the shed only for what it holds that is useful to me if and when I desperately need it. For example, somewhere in the abyss I found the Miracle Grow to put on some flowers that were looking a little sad in my flower pot out front yesterday. Also about once a week I brave the shed to find the lawn mower and trimmer to mow the lawn as I took over house and yard maintenance when I stopped working. But really, the shed can just stay a disaster. There may be great treasures in there lurking that I would be really glad to find but for now I'm ok with just keeping the door shut. Alan is the same about computers. He likes ebay and looking at the tide predictions and weather forecast for the weekend for his sailing but that's about it.

Still, I love staying in touch with people. I looked at my friend list on Facebook yesterday and I was determined to de-friend some folks that added me as a friend but have never said a word to me since. The "I knew you or heard of you at sometime in my past" thinking as to why you add someone as a friend on Facebook just doesn't cut it for me any more. I still want meaningful relationships in the age of social computing. I use Facebook to stay in touch with dear friends that I love, that God has put into my life for a reason and that I want to encourage. I don't use it as a competition tool to see how many friends I can rack up versus someone else. Wasn't there a study done once on how many friends any one person can ever manage to have at any one time? I'm quite sure the number is under 355 - my current number of "Facebook" friends.

Anyway, blogs are also a great place to just randomly say anything you're thinking. Why in the world anyone would be interested in reading all the junk that goes on in my head is a mystery to me...

So - this week. Well, I guess I can say I've learned a lot about others and a lot about myself this week. At the church, many came to work with the family of one of the leaders in our church on the back garden. The before and after transformation is amazing. I felt very blessed by the Lord for working the one day that I did. God just kept reminding me to work for him and so that's what I tried to do - work with all my might so that He would be pleased. When Alan and I finally got home I was sooo exhausted but I also felt so blessed inside. Only God can do that.

Alan and I have also had some really good discussions and we've tried as much as possible to stop getting offended or upset when we debate about things where we have different opinions. I'm amazed at how different we are and yet how alike we are in our thinking. Culturally I feel like I have much more in common with the Romanians I've met since being here than with the Brits I've met. I'm re-reading a book called Foreign to Familiar and it says this should be expected because Romanians and Southerners from the US are "hot", relationship oriented cultures and most of northern Europe is classified as very "cold", individually oriented cultures. Still - God was so gracious and good to bring us together. We've been married now nearly one and a half years and we are more giddy together now than ever. We laugh and kiss and hug nearly all the time when we're alone. I think we'll be newlyweds for several more years if not forever and I love that! Only God could have taken me from what I had before to what I have now.

One of the best parts of my week was definitely getting to know Julia better. I call her my long lost twin. Julia is from Romania and is very good friends with Mihai and Simona in our church and housegroup. Mihai and Simona are two people that Alan and I think the world of so it wasn't surprising that we took to Julia so quickly. A lot of the things that had troubled my spirit about our church and about England, she also has picked up on and now I don't feel as crazy as I did before.

Having her come to minister to us at our housegroup on the 5th was amazing. I think we all felt the Holy Spirit really minister to us through her singing and her words of encouragement. She also came and led worship the following Wednesday for Influence and then Thursday for housegroup again. Wednesday was amazing. I just felt God came down and ministered to the youth and adults alike. Mere Christianity continues to blow all our minds I think. How God used C.S. Lewis to write the books he wrote that speak to the hearts of both christian and non-christian alike amazes me.

Our housegroup on Thursday was also good but it was more relaxed and I couldn't tell if it was because we were all just so tired or what exactly but there was definitely a different spirit in the room. Still we encouraged and loved on eachother and had a few laughs and it was good. Julia also led worship yesterday at church and I promise you it just couldn't have gotten any better. Please join with us in praying that she will raise the money she needs to continue to minister in Romania. She has a love for her people that is so wonderful and both Alan and I are praying Gods perfect choice for her for a husband will be found so that they can minister together in Romania. She deserves someone that will cherish her and someone that was hand-picked for her from the beginning of time and I believe God knows who that is and is waiting to bring him into her life at just the perfect time... just like he did for me with Alan.

Speaking of Alan, this is his last week of work at Save the Family. He's worked on and off for them for ten years and we're so grateful that God is going to provide for us so he can leave. We look forward to working for the Lord at the church starting next week until we go to Germany in mid October. Please pray Gods will would be done in every decision we and our church makes and in every step we take and please pray our house will sell. We love you all so very much.

No comments:

Post a Comment