Sunday Reflections (January 6)

My Sunday morning was spent teaching two- and three-year-olds, so today's reflection is a quote from the book I'm currently reading, Saving CeeCee Honeycutt. It's a young girl's first attempt at praying:

Hello. My name is Cecelia Rose Honeycutt, and I live at 831 Tulipwood Avenue. The preacher on the radio said if we opened our hears and asked, we'd be saved. He said it was that simple. So I'm asking, will you please save Momma? Something's wrong with her mind and it's getting worse every day. And while you're at it, will you save me too? There's nothing wrong with my mind, but I sure could use some help down here. I'll do anything you say. Thank you. Amen.

Often in the entertainment world, whether it be movies or books, a first prayer is depicted as comedic. But what struck me in CeeCee's prayer was her innocence. Yes, it's funny that she introduces herself to God and that she tells Him where she lives. But it's clear that there's no pretentiousness in her prayer.

My hope is that my prayers, although not including an introduction or my address, would contain such honesty and openness with God. He doesn't need me to wear a mask. After all, He knows exactly what I'm feeling before I even open my mouth. May my prayers be as honest as CeeCee Honeycutt's.

Reading List 2013--Part One

With the arrival of Miss G last May, my brain became mush, and the most it could handle was watching House Hunters or My First Place. I tried to read, but my free time was spent napping or rushing around, trying to finish up household chores while I could.

I've really missed reading, though, so this year I've decided to be more purposeful about it. My goal is to read two books each month for a total of twenty-four books read this year. I'm hopeful I can balance fiction and nonfiction, but my to-read list is leaning heavily on the nonfiction side. (If you have any fiction books that you'd like to recommend, please leave your suggestions in the comments.)

On the blog, I'm going to track the books I plan to read and follow up with reviews of what I've read. Because I know my interests may change and because I really don't know which must-read books I'll come across this year, I've decided to post quarterly rather than list all my to-reads in one post.

Here are the books I plan to read in the first three months of the year:

Financial Peace Revisited by Dave Ramsey (January nonfiction selection)
Dave and I attended Financial Peace University at our church a couple of years ago, and at least one of us enjoyed it. (Ha!) We have some new financial goals that we'd like to meet, so I'm hoping Financial Peace Revisited will give me a boost in the motivation department.

Saving CeeCee Honeycutt by Beth Hoffman (January fiction selection)
I can't remember where I'd first heard about this book, but I picked it up on my last visit to the library. Since I have it, I might as well select it for my January fiction read.

7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker (February nonfiction selection)
My employer annually offers book groups for employees to join. I've been a participant nearly every year, and this year, I'm planning to lead a discussion of 7. I'm excited about reading this book, which I'm expecting will challenge me and others in the group.

The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien (February fiction selection)
Can you believe I have never read The Hobbit? With the recent release of the movie based on this book, I've decided it's a good time to dig into this classic.

Unglued by Lysa TerKeurst (March nonfiction selection)
Unglued was all over the blogosphere when it came out last summer, and it's been sitting on my bookshelf for a few months. It's about time I actually read it!

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (March fiction selection)
I have picked up this book, started it, and then put it down without finishing. In March, I hope to actually finish this classic.

2012--A Year's Review

Last night, when Dave and I were reflecting on the past year, we agreed that the theme of 2012 would be change. In 2012, we moved, lost a parent, had a child, started new jobs, welcomed a nephew, and left our church. Phew! People would ask us how we were making it, and our answer was, simply, God. He is the One who gave us strength through it all. Now, as we begin 2013, we hope this new year is a bit more settled. But we know from experience that God is faithful, even in the most tumultuous of times, and He is more than capable of giving us strength when we're at our weakest.

In order to remember all that went down in 2012, I thought I'd do a quick month-by-month recap of the year.

January--House Drama
We started out the year with an offer on what appeared to be a nice starter home. Then we discovered it may or may not be in a flood plain. After our praying that God would kindly slam the door shut if this wasn't the house for us, our inspector discovered huge cracks in the foundation that were causing the house to shift like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. There was our answer! The next week, we found another home that was perfect for us! Our offer was accepted, and we made plans to close on the house in March.

February--It's a Girl!
February 3 was a very special day for us because we found out we were having a girl! I had been convinced it was a boy, so I was very shocked. We decided, in order to ensure that people would give us the gender neutral items we'd registered for, we wouldn't announce the gender to anyone other than our family until I had my baby showers. It was one of the toughest secrets to keep!

March--We Bought a House?!
After signing our lives away, we walked out of a nondescript office building with the keys to our first home. In that month, our garage door opener broke; the water heater's pilot light wouldn't light, requiring an expensive call to the heating guy; and our pipes in the kitchen sprung a leak or two. I wondered if home ownership was all it was cracked up to be as we settled in and paid for these unexpected home repairs. (I'm happy to report that having this home is, indeed, worth it.)

April--Flying Solo
After a valiant fight against cancer, Dave's dad took a turn for the worse in April, so Dave headed to Scotland to be with his family for two weeks. It was difficult being apart during this time of uncertainty, but Skype calls helped, and we had amazing people from our church looking out for my eight-months-pregnant self while Dave was away. Three days after Dave returned to the States, his dad passed away. We miss him a lot, but we're grateful he doesn't have to deal with the pain anymore.

May--Surprise!
Miss G wasn't due until June 12, but she decided to surprise all of us by arriving on May 19. I spent a lot of that day in shock, not really believing that my daughter was indeed on her way. In the weeks that followed, I couldn't imagine having to wait any longer to meet Miss G.

June--Parenthood
The month of June was a blur. We were getting used to being parents of this tiny human being, adjusting to sleepless nights, and loving every minute of it.

July--First Trip
Dave and I decided to celebrate our anniversary with a trip to Michigan--Miss G's first big trip out of state. She was a champ, and we had a lot of fun going to the beach, drinking Biggby coffee, and eating our anniversary dinner at Logan's Roadhouse.

August--Ch-ch-ch-changes
Yes, most of the year was filled with change, but August was by far the craziest. In August, I embarked on a new journey in my career as a work-at-home mom; Dave began new jobs as a resource teacher and a kidmin assistant at our church's main campus; and we welcomed our nephew to the family. With Dave's new job at church, we had to leave our local campus and attend the main campus again. August marked the last month of regularly attending our local campus.

September--New/Old Church
As I mentioned in the August review, we moved back to the main campus of our church in September. This was a difficult change, and Dave and I prayed a lot about his decision to take the kidmin job when we learned it would involve this move. This was the month we learned that following God's direction in your life isn't always easy, but it's worth the sacrifice.

October--Happy Birthday
Nothing much happened in October. We celebrated my birthday at the beginning of the month, and we continued to attend a marriage class at church, which we both really enjoyed. All-in-all, although it was a "normal" month, it was nice to experience normal again.

November--Baby Dedication
For many years, I would participate as a member of the congregation for many dedications, imagining what it would be like to dedicate my own child someday. In November, Dave and I stood before the congregation to dedicate Miss G to the One who gave her to us. I know I haven't been a mom for very long, but that moment will be one of my most treasured memories.

December--First Christmas
Everyone told us this year was going to be so much fun now that we had a child. I think we'll have more fun once Miss G is old enough to realize a little bit more about what Christmas is all about, but this year was a wonderful celebration of the best gifts our family received this year--Miss G and her cousin.

The year 2012 was without a doubt a crazy one, but it was good. Our heavenly Father was with us every step of the way, and even during the times of uncertainty, knowing He was walking beside us, and sometimes carrying us, was the reason why I would consider 2012 an amazing year.

Sunday Reflections (December 30)

How can it already be the final Sunday of the year? It feels like just yesterday we were in the middle of October, and we're already looking at 2013's beginning.

This weekend at church was what I would call an "off" week, not because the preaching was bad (in fact, it was excellent!) but because we were stuck between the end of Advent and the beginning of a new series.

Today's message was about Nicodemus, and it was given by our church's college pastor, who also happens to be a professor at a local university. I had never heard him preach before, but I really enjoyed his take on the story of Nicodemus.

Nicodemus is mentioned only in the Gospel of John, yet he is a brilliant example--based on his negative attributes--of what it means to be a follower of Christ.

First of all, a genuine disciple surrenders totally to Jesus even in the face of intellectual uncertainty. Most of us familiar with Nicodemus know that he had a difficult time understanding what Jesus meant when He said we must be born again (see John 3). Nicodemus approached Jesus with only his reason, but not every question has an answer that can be found through reason. In order to be followers of Jesus, we must let go of our grasp on reasoning and insert a bit of faith.

Second, a genuine disciple demonstrates loyalty to Jesus publicly without regard to personal cost. I had never realized that Nicodemus is mentioned two more times in the Gospel of John after his secret meeting with Jesus. In John 7:50, we see that Nicodemus is among the crowd of Jewish leaders who have gathered to ridicule Jesus and those who believe in Him. When Nicodemus, in his own way, questions the leaders' approach regarding Jesus, he is quickly shut-up and doesn't speak up again. In this point, Pastor Joel encouraged us to compare Nicodemus's actions to those of the woman at the well and the blind man who was healed. They were not ashamed to proclaim the works of Christ. Not being ashamed does have a caution, however: we must be wise as we live out our Christianity in the public sphere. Too many times we've seen those who have not applied wisdom and have embarrassed our faith rather than promoted it.

Third, a genuine disciple  follows Jesus without confusing religious activity for real relationship. In John 19, Nicodemus joined Joseph of Arimathea to bury Jesus. This devotion of Nicodemus is admirable, except it comes too late: Nicodemus is serving a dead Jesus. In the same way, we can be at risk of serving a "dead" god by serving religious activities rather than having a relationship with our living Savior.

I feel kind of sorry for Nicodemus. Here he is, a man who made quite a few mistakes when it came to learning about and deciding to follow the Messiah. But he has contributed to our faith by, in his own way, showing us what it means to be a genuine follower of Christ, even if that means doing things the exact opposite way Nicodemus did them.

Sunday Reflections (November 18)

Today was the final sermon in our church's recent series on marriage. I have learned so much from our church since Dave and I started attending three years ago, but I would definitely say that this series has been my absolute favorite. The practical tips and the timing (yes, having a child completely throws your marriage for a loop) had me furiously writing notes and thinking of ways to apply what we were learning these last few weeks.

Today's message was given by Jim Burns, president of HomeWord and author of books for couples, ministry leaders, and teens. Today's topic was on protecting our marriages, and while everything the speaker said was encouraging and challenging, two things stood out to me.

The first thing was Jim's point on commitment. In an age with numerous attractive distractions, we need to schedule our priorities, not prioritize what's on our schedule. If you asked most Christians what their priorities were, they would likely list them as (1) God, (2) marriage, (3) children, and (4) vocation. But do we often live as if that were the order of our priorities? We need to proactively arrange our schedules so that they reflect the proper order of priorities instead of letting them get out of control.

The second thing was what Jim called The Closer Challenge: "I will commit to spending 20 minutes together a week to build spiritual intimacy with my spouse." Jim and his wife decided to implement this after they had tried and failed to have daily devotions together. (Oh, can I relate to that!) The point is that anyone can find 20 minutes each week to devote to building spiritual intimacy. What will fill this time? Reading a book on marriage or spiritual matters out loud to each other, praying, discussing spiritual things. Although this wasn't mentioned, listening to a podcast together and then discussing the topic would be another option. The main point, however, is to commit to spending time together each week.

I am sad to see this series come to a close, but I am so grateful for all that I learned from it. Our church is such a blessing, and I am so thankful that God led us there three years ago.

Yes, Michigan

I've grown up visiting Michigan many times in the fall thanks to having a mom who hails from the mitten state. Most of my fall in Michigan memories involve rain, clouds, and a chill in the air. But some of my memories include the excitement felt in the state when their two biggest college teams meet on a Saturday afternoon to play for the Paul Bunyan Trophy.

Today we found ourselves in the state for lunch with our Michigan relatives. (I may or may not have selected this date to coincide with one of my favorite sports rivalries.) People with Michigan and Michigan State apparel could be seen in the Panera we met at. My family teasingly trash-talked each other's favorite team, including giving my brother a hard time for allowing my nephew out of the house in State colors (he was, thank goodness, wearing his Michigan socks). The barista at Biggby, spotting my Michigan sweatshirt, asked if I thought we would win. "We better!" I replied.

Sure, there's the Cubs vs White Sox rivalry in the cross-town classic here in Chicago, but nothing beats the feel of college football match-ups. I don't know if I've ever discussed a Chicago team's status with a stranger. In Michigan, you suddenly find yourself a part of a big family of fellow fans, and you feel comfortable talking to anyone else wearing their support (and giving dirty looks to those cheering for the other team--just kidding, maybe).

Alas, we were already on our way home to Illinois by the time the game started, but we found it online via a Michigan radio station and listened to the last quarter. With only a few minutes to go and Michigan trailing by one point, the streaming stopped! We found out Michigan scored a field goal only by refreshing the scores page over and over again. Soon my parents' house was filled with the notes of "Hail to the Victors."

What a perfect ending to one of my favorite fall days!

Quiet

I was working alone in my office at work a few days ago when I realized just how quiet it was. At the moment, there were no coworkers talking or walking past. I had forgone my usual working soundtrack to better focus on the project at hand. It struck me that I must have a lot of noise in my life if I was suddenly noticing the quiet of my office.

Tonight Dave and I had Shark Tank on while Miss G was still awake. Dave had to rewind it multiple times to catch what had been said in the middle of Miss G's babbling. She filled our house with her shrieks and laughs and "stories" (what we call her "Ga-ga-ga's" and "Ha-ha-ha's") until it was time for bed. Then she filled the house with her cries until she finally quieted down and fell asleep 20 minutes after I'd first laid her down in her crib.

Having a baby in the house is certainly part of the reason why my life is so noisy, but there are other ways I invite noise into my daily routine. Most days begin with the radio on in the kitchen as I prepare my breakfast while everyone else is still asleep. Nearly every day ends with talk radio in the background because it helps me fall asleep. In between, I automatically hit the power button for my radio just as soon as I start the car. And there's often a TV show or movie on in the evenings after Miss G goes to bed.

In addition to physical noise in my life, I invite a lot of mental noise in, too. I flutter from Google Reader to Facebook to Twitter back to Facebook again, only to be inundated with new blog posts, status updates, and tweets. Frankly, 99.9% of what I read isn't essential; it is more of a hobby. But when does that hobby start taking up too much brain space and making too much noise?

I don't have a challenge to give myself, but I do wonder if life with a little less noise would be better. I know that this week, spending the hour between Miss G's bedtime and mine reading a book in the quiet rather than watching TV has helped me wind down more easily. I know that from past experience, I have felt more relaxed and in tune with what's around me when driving in the car without the radio on. No, I won't challenge myself to 30 Days of Quiet, but perhaps I'll be a bit more intentional about making time for it.