March 5: Lent

Today begins the season of Lent.  It's a time for Christians to prepare ourselves for Good Friday and the journey to the cross.  Many people during this season give up something.  I love this time of year.  It's a time to pause and reflect.  It's a time to prepare my heart for this upcoming season.  Lent also seems to happen in a crazy time of the academic year.  Things are busy with projects, or programs, ... or this little book report.  Anyway, I've bee thinking about what to sacrifice during this season.  Sugar?  Coffee?  Right, that's not even a serious option right now.  And as I began thinking about giving up (or taking something on, which I have often done in the past), I began thinking about how my time feels so precious right now.  The days are counting down until graduation.  I'm trying to finish this little dissertation.  Time is precious and of the essence.  Aside from exercise being one of the first things to go when I get busy and stressed (yes, I know it helps relieve stress, but ... whatever, why am I justifying it) is time reading, meditating, and praying.  Often I'll still find a few minutes to get on facebook, but I won't open my bible.  Therefore, during this crazy busy time, and in this season of Lent I am making it a priority to give of what feels very precious to me... my time.  This d365 is a simply devotion that goes through an item to have you pause, listen, think, pray, and go.  I like it because of it's simplicity and profoundness.  I am setting aside time each day to walk through these entries.

Jesus, take my time, draw me closer to you as I prepare and journey to the cross.  Guide me.  Reveal yourself more to me.  May this journey to the cross make me more like you, an my may life draw others to you and your deep love.

December 29: A Jesus Church

Today we went to my sisters church for morning service (but the west side).  They've changed their name from Solid Rock to A Jesus Church: west side, or east side, etc.  The sermon was on the first three verses of 1st Thessalonians, particularly the third verse about working in faith, laboring in love, and hope in Jesus.  He challenge us to think about things this year, our responsibilities (whether work, family, etc) and what specific things God wants us to do or focus on this year.  I believe there are many specific things this year: finish dissertation, graduate, get a job.  However, I've also been thinking about the times I feel like I'm suppose to do something (yes, way more subjective) and leaning into the discomfort (or not).  More on this later, as I ponder further.

Thoughts on Community & the Ecklunds

I spent the evening with the lovely Ecklund women! Gianna is 2, Selah a few months, and Em...well, older than me (but not by much). Emily, Adam (her husband), and I met at Azusa Pacific, during undergrad. I also had the privilege of going through graduation school with them! One of our professors, John Hoffman, on the first day of class said, 'you won't be able to do this program alone.' How true I found that statement to be. The three of us (and a few others) quickly became good friends.

So when I came out to Baylor in 2005, they soon followed, but not for me of course. :) Anyway, it has been a pleasure having them here. I've been blessed by their friendship through the years and it's a joy to walk life with them! For me, it's nice to have people who know me, who I don't have to 'get to know', and who have seen me in different stages/phases of life. Additionally, I get to walk life with them. They now have two beautiful daughters and I find such delight in both of them!

Tonight it was just Em, the girls (Adam joined later), and myself. What fun (and trying at times). I get the pleasure of watching, helping, and being able to leave discipline to the 'parent'. At one point, after G was ready for bed, I had Selah in one arm and G next to me on the couch reading her a book about dinosaurs. They are great girls, and I love spending time with them.

After they went to bed and Adam came home, the three of us caught up on life, talked about PhDs, and other oddities.

Now stay with me for a bit. Last Sunday, my pastor was talking about Psalm 133. This is 14 of 15 Psalms about the ascension of Israel. These 15 Psalms represent the 15 steps that lead to the top of the mountain where the Holy of Holies was kept. As the Israelites (in community) would travel the journey to and up the mountain, they would recite these 15 Psalms on the last 15 step leading directly to the Holy of Holies. So Psalm 133 is the last step before the Holy of Holies and it says in short, how good and pleasant it is when brother & sisters live together in unity. Symbolically, the last step before they reached the Holy of Holies, God's dwelling place, is about community. Maybe it's suppose to represent the idea the one cannot make it to God alone. Maybe it's suppose to represent the journey is meant to be lived in community. Or maybe it's that the closest thing to Gods dwelling place, his heart, and essentially himself is community. And not just surface level community but community in which one lives, suffers, shares joys, and caries one another's burdens...true kiononia (Christian community).

I've been thinking this week about community and what it means for me. Tonight was a great opportunity to bless Emily. And yet, I received more than I probably gave. I am so grateful for Adam & Em's friendship and the joy they and their children bring to my life.