Today I had to move out of my office. We all had to move. The Center is changing hands. Politics. It will be renovated, shut down completely, we will be displaced to various parts of the university (me to a 4th floor windowless office that's nowhere near the university), and we don't know if we will ever return. They say 4 months, but everything is changing, people (including my whole project) are being kicked out in stages, and no one is telling us anything. Politics.
It was a sad day, because in spite of the fact that we're not the kind of work environment where everyone is all chummy and eats lunch together on a regular basis, we don't want to be broken up. We don't want to not know when we'll be together again-- if ever. We're the kind of place where we hardly see each other, where most days the building is half-empty, where people are always in another country or under the pressure of various deadlines, where it's taken me, quite frankly, a long time to get to know people. But I have, a year and a half later, built some significant relationships, that I am sad to see go.
There is my colleague that I see sometimes at mass, who is also hiding a fervent faith under her professional academic persona, who passes on to me rich morsels of her Catholic faith. She is a very deep person, who if you can get her to talk about herself and her experiences, always has amazing things to say. Today as we were all packing up, wandering in and out of offices, feeling sad and in-transition, talking more than usual, I got several incredible stories. A rather famous friend of hers just made her the godmother of his child, but what I didn't know is that his family has also just adopted an African baby that was abandoned in a latrine. An unexpected encounter today brought up a connection from her past, a close friend who got AIDS (and later died) while shooting up with his 4 brothers-- they all got AIDS. And then, while packing up a framed (and beautiful) Oscar Romero quote, she got more animated than I had ever seen her while talking about her "main men", the Jesuits, and passed on this quote:
Nothing is more practical than finding God, that is, than falling in love in a quite absolute, final way. What you are in love with, what seizes your imagination will affect everything. It will decide what will get you out of bed in the mornings, what you will do with your evenings, how you spend your weekends, what you read, who you know, what breaks your heart, and what amazes you with joy and gratitude. Fall in love, stay in love, and it will decide everything. (Fr. Pedro Arrupe, 28th Superior General of the Society of Jesus)
In other news, I won a huge, gigantic, nearly 1-lb. Toblerone today. I frequently participate in psychology studies for the extra cash. Sometimes I earn quite a bit of money. I have now beaten the odds with such diverse talents as winning simplified computer versions of Texas Hold 'Em, showing very selfish/anti-social behavior in a version of the Prisoner's Dilemma, and discerning which line is infinitesimally longer in hundreds of computer trials. But I think this study was the most exciting ever-- the regular money PLUS a giant Toblerone.
Our other big news is Joel finally got a job! Three days before our six month anniversary! It was quite a weekend.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Sunday, February 17, 2008
2000 kilograms of maize
I just got the following letter from the leader of the Uganda orphans group, and I am so delighted:
On behalf of my of my fellow members Iam happy to inform you that we were able to harvest two thousand fifty kilograms (2050 kilograms) of maize from the land we bought. We sold off Two thousand kilograms (2000 kilograms) totaling up to five hundred thousand shillings (shillings 500,000/=) .we as members contributed Twenty thousand shillings each (20,000/=) making total of three hundred thousand shillings (360,000/=).
When we added it to the money collected from the money we got from maize it totaled up to Eight hundred sixty thousand shillings only (860,000/=)
After that collection, we decided to construct an office to be able to conduct meetings and training our orphans in modern farming methods. We will also be able to have bible studies from this office. The office we used to have has been costing us so highly. But, this money is not enough to push us through the whole job, we have therefore, bought some of the building materials as below
Cement 6 bags
265,000/=
Bricks 4100 bricks 225,000/=
Poles 20 poles 50,000/=
Sand 3 Trips 15,000/=
Window 1 40,000/=
Door 1 50,000/=
Nails 3kgs 15,000/=
Labours 1 200,000/=
TOTAL 860,000/=
We kindly request you and your friends, members to help us accomplish the constructions we are on by proving the remaining material.
The following are the estimated material we request you to help us into
1. Iron sheets 12 240,000/=
2. Furniture 160,000/=
3. Paints 1 Jerrycan 40,000/=
Total 440,000/=
In case, we get the assistance from you we hope to finish the job in March 2008.
We are energy hoping for more fruits after the a completion of the office because we will be able to train our orphans
We will be pleased if our request is put into consideration. Pictures showing the office will be sent after we have fully done on it
We wish you and all happy Easter days
Yours! James
On behalf of my of my fellow members Iam happy to inform you that we were able to harvest two thousand fifty kilograms (2050 kilograms) of maize from the land we bought. We sold off Two thousand kilograms (2000 kilograms) totaling up to five hundred thousand shillings (shillings 500,000/=) .we as members contributed Twenty thousand shillings each (20,000/=) making total of three hundred thousand shillings (360,000/=).
When we added it to the money collected from the money we got from maize it totaled up to Eight hundred sixty thousand shillings only (860,000/=)
After that collection, we decided to construct an office to be able to conduct meetings and training our orphans in modern farming methods. We will also be able to have bible studies from this office. The office we used to have has been costing us so highly. But, this money is not enough to push us through the whole job, we have therefore, bought some of the building materials as below
Cement 6 bags
265,000/=
Bricks 4100 bricks 225,000/=
Poles 20 poles 50,000/=
Sand 3 Trips 15,000/=
Window 1 40,000/=
Door 1 50,000/=
Nails 3kgs 15,000/=
Labours 1 200,000/=
TOTAL 860,000/=
We kindly request you and your friends, members to help us accomplish the constructions we are on by proving the remaining material.
The following are the estimated material we request you to help us into
1. Iron sheets 12 240,000/=
2. Furniture 160,000/=
3. Paints 1 Jerrycan 40,000/=
Total 440,000/=
In case, we get the assistance from you we hope to finish the job in March 2008.
We are energy hoping for more fruits after the a completion of the office because we will be able to train our orphans
We will be pleased if our request is put into consideration. Pictures showing the office will be sent after we have fully done on it
We wish you and all happy Easter days
Yours! James
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
a melted cheese kind of day
I am working from home today, because I'm working on an article that is soon to be published, not in an academic journal, but in a journal that I had actually heard of before writing the article, which is something. Stay tuned. There's a winter storm warning in effect (my other reason for working from home), so I am watching the stages of winter storm go by in the outside world-- first several inches of snow, then torrents of rain, and supposedly there is flooding about.
Because my brain is working so hard and because it is this kind of a day, a day that makes you want to eat warm and gooey things, I have been eating way too much cheese. First a grilled ham and cheese sandwich (as my LOTR-obsessed husband would say, an "elevensie"), and then a very nice quesadilla. I'm not sure the cheese is helping my writing-- mostly I just feel like taking a nap.
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and I'm excited, because I've always loved Valentine's Day. Even in all my lonely single years. I just think it's a great day to celebrate the people you love and how much they mean to you I'm reading a Paul Theroux book right now (he's a travel writer) and he is paddling around The Happy Isles of Oceania (that's the title of the book) and observing the indigenous people and their culture (this is about 20 years ago). In one group of people he found that the relationship they valued above all else was friendship-- and that even marriage was only seen as being a uniquely strong friendship, and that's why it was special. I thought that was interesting, and not untrue.
Not that I'm not really happy to have a Valentine this year, in addition to all my great friends. He took me on a very cool date on Saturday-- a reading of John and Abigail Adams' love letters to each other (some of the letters-- there are over 1000) accompanied by small courses of food taken from Abigail Adams' cookbooks. The letters were read by a pair of actors who did a masterful job. The letters were really interesting (and beautiful), and then the actors stayed in character and took questions. I happened to use the restroom afterwards at the same time as Abigail and she was still in character, exclaiming over the toilet paper and other modern amenities of the bathroom. Very funny. A bit later she was talking to someone at the next table over and J was listening in and suddenly she turned around and said, rather sternly, "Young man, I see that you are admiring me. If you have anything to say to me, you had best direct it to my husband." John walked by about then, heard the comment, and said to J, "It's quite all right sir, I admire her too." We laughed!
Here's a picture of us:
Because my brain is working so hard and because it is this kind of a day, a day that makes you want to eat warm and gooey things, I have been eating way too much cheese. First a grilled ham and cheese sandwich (as my LOTR-obsessed husband would say, an "elevensie"), and then a very nice quesadilla. I'm not sure the cheese is helping my writing-- mostly I just feel like taking a nap.
Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and I'm excited, because I've always loved Valentine's Day. Even in all my lonely single years. I just think it's a great day to celebrate the people you love and how much they mean to you I'm reading a Paul Theroux book right now (he's a travel writer) and he is paddling around The Happy Isles of Oceania (that's the title of the book) and observing the indigenous people and their culture (this is about 20 years ago). In one group of people he found that the relationship they valued above all else was friendship-- and that even marriage was only seen as being a uniquely strong friendship, and that's why it was special. I thought that was interesting, and not untrue.
Not that I'm not really happy to have a Valentine this year, in addition to all my great friends. He took me on a very cool date on Saturday-- a reading of John and Abigail Adams' love letters to each other (some of the letters-- there are over 1000) accompanied by small courses of food taken from Abigail Adams' cookbooks. The letters were read by a pair of actors who did a masterful job. The letters were really interesting (and beautiful), and then the actors stayed in character and took questions. I happened to use the restroom afterwards at the same time as Abigail and she was still in character, exclaiming over the toilet paper and other modern amenities of the bathroom. Very funny. A bit later she was talking to someone at the next table over and J was listening in and suddenly she turned around and said, rather sternly, "Young man, I see that you are admiring me. If you have anything to say to me, you had best direct it to my husband." John walked by about then, heard the comment, and said to J, "It's quite all right sir, I admire her too." We laughed!
Here's a picture of us:
Monday, February 4, 2008
as an under-cover evangelical...
I was just telling a friend last night that often I feel "under-cover" about being a (gasp!) evangelical Christian on a secular campus. So this article made me want to cheer.
Evangelicals a Liberal Can Love
(Nicholas Kristoff, New York Times, 3 Feb 2008)
Evangelicals a Liberal Can Love
(Nicholas Kristoff, New York Times, 3 Feb 2008)
Sunday, February 3, 2008
our house
Mom, these are for you.
Thanksgiving with some very cool second cousins that I had never met until that day, and J's friend who was visiting from London.
(and because Thanksgiving is all about the food)
Our house, decorated for Christmas
Thanksgiving with some very cool second cousins that I had never met until that day, and J's friend who was visiting from London.
(and because Thanksgiving is all about the food)
Our house, decorated for Christmas
Captain Hook on honeymoon
For months I have been meaning to post these pictures. Finally, on a day when everyone else (including my husband) is watching the Super Bowl, and I have a little time on my hands. (And someday I will get around to posting some wedding pictures, but considering that I have a couple thousand, that is a little daunting.)
Brian, these are for you.
For everyone else, as a way of explanation, my brother believes that what every just-married couple needs is a bunch of random junk in their getaway car. He bestowed upon us a bouquet of pinecones and twigs, lots of little plastic figurines and home "decorating" items clearly picked up from the junk bin at Goodwill, other things which I don't even remember, and some other things which I do remember but will not write about here. I guess we should have just thanked out lucky stars there wasn't a deer butt in there (inside joke). We threw all of it away, except for this little Captain Hook, who we thought we would take on honeymoon with us.
So here it is, Captain Hook (and J&A) on honeymoon:
We started off at a B&B in the gorgeous mountains east of Salem.
This is Captain Hook, on the steering wheel of our cool red Mustang.
After driving around Salem for a couple hours looking for a dry-cleaners at which to drop off my wedding dress (it was a Sunday morning, apparently not prime dry cleaning time), we and the cool red Mustang arrived at the airport too late to catch our flight to Vancouver Island, BC and had to wait a few hours for the next flight. (During which time we ran into one of J's friends who had flown out for the wedding!) J insisted on taking this picture of forlorn Allison at the airport. Actually, the wait wasn't that bad-- I mostly look like death warmed over because I was soooo tired. I don't remember ever having been that tired in my entire life. Weddings are exhausting.
Finally we did arrive at our destination, a fantastic B&B at which we ate food like this while gazing at views like this.
The B&B had some other, um, perks. The suite (really a self-contained apartment) we stayed in is occupied part of the year by the son and daughter-in-law of the inn-keepers, who live in Japan. So it had various Japanese gadgets, such as an only-the-Japanese-would-think-of-this heated toilet seat that also functioned as a bidet. In fact, it had so many choices for how it sprayed water that it required a remote control. Captain Hook is demonstrating.
We had a great time driving around the island...
Captain Hook looking all tough at high tea...
I love this picture of J, sitting on the beach, playing guitar.
Finally back to Boston, and the enormous pile of boxes we created as we unwrapped gifts. (Captain Hook is in there, if you look closely.)
Brian, these are for you.
For everyone else, as a way of explanation, my brother believes that what every just-married couple needs is a bunch of random junk in their getaway car. He bestowed upon us a bouquet of pinecones and twigs, lots of little plastic figurines and home "decorating" items clearly picked up from the junk bin at Goodwill, other things which I don't even remember, and some other things which I do remember but will not write about here. I guess we should have just thanked out lucky stars there wasn't a deer butt in there (inside joke). We threw all of it away, except for this little Captain Hook, who we thought we would take on honeymoon with us.
So here it is, Captain Hook (and J&A) on honeymoon:
We started off at a B&B in the gorgeous mountains east of Salem.
This is Captain Hook, on the steering wheel of our cool red Mustang.
After driving around Salem for a couple hours looking for a dry-cleaners at which to drop off my wedding dress (it was a Sunday morning, apparently not prime dry cleaning time), we and the cool red Mustang arrived at the airport too late to catch our flight to Vancouver Island, BC and had to wait a few hours for the next flight. (During which time we ran into one of J's friends who had flown out for the wedding!) J insisted on taking this picture of forlorn Allison at the airport. Actually, the wait wasn't that bad-- I mostly look like death warmed over because I was soooo tired. I don't remember ever having been that tired in my entire life. Weddings are exhausting.
Finally we did arrive at our destination, a fantastic B&B at which we ate food like this while gazing at views like this.
The B&B had some other, um, perks. The suite (really a self-contained apartment) we stayed in is occupied part of the year by the son and daughter-in-law of the inn-keepers, who live in Japan. So it had various Japanese gadgets, such as an only-the-Japanese-would-think-of-this heated toilet seat that also functioned as a bidet. In fact, it had so many choices for how it sprayed water that it required a remote control. Captain Hook is demonstrating.
We had a great time driving around the island...
Captain Hook looking all tough at high tea...
I love this picture of J, sitting on the beach, playing guitar.
Finally back to Boston, and the enormous pile of boxes we created as we unwrapped gifts. (Captain Hook is in there, if you look closely.)
faith journeys
We just passed our 5-month mark, which was funny on a couple levels. First, because we've now been married longer than we dated. Second, because I keep thinking there's no way it's been only 5 months. Not just because it seems like we've gone through years of life "stuff" since August 25, but also because sometimes I can hardly remember a "before". Marriage is so different than I thought it would be, not that I really had a clear idea-- it's just so different than anything else has ever been. I keep trying to wrap my mind around it-- to wrap my mind around the changes in me, because maybe the biggest surprise is that I am becoming a different person. Sure, I've heard a thousand times that the two would become one flesh-- but for the first time I know that it's not just metaphor, it's happening to me, and it involves a fundamental change in the me I know. I keep thinking back to those vows we made, and thinking that we meant them with all our hearts, but really, we had no idea.
Sometimes marriage feels like a slumber party with my best friend that never ends, and I think, Life shouldn't be this good. Sometimes marriage feels like starring in my own romance movie, except so much better. Sometimes marriage feels kind of like being Siamese twins-- we're stuck together, from the little daily things to the big life decisions, we do it together, because there is no option to cut out and do our own thing. Some days I love it and think that I couldn't be more bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh than if we actually did share a heart and a pair of lungs. It is an incredible mystery-- and incredibly wonderful. Some days I want freedom, selfishness, space. Sometimes I want to scream, for days on end. Sometimes I am so tired, and all will to keep going, keep working out the communication, the relationship, how to love-- just dies.
In marriage there's no hiding from your spouse, and that can be scary, but more than that there's no hiding from yourself. That is the really scary part. All the selfishness and ugliness you'd shoved away somewhere comes out, and you have to look at your own heart, and there's no hiding. J and I think often of Eustace's dragon experience in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. You realize you're a dragon, a layer of your awful dragon-ness comes off, agonizingly, and yet there are just more layers to go. I am more in awe all the time of God's purpose in marriage-- to grow us and clean us up. But man, can it be painful.
I think most of all marriage is a faith journey. I think about our circumstances and I think we've had it particularly rough in the first 5 months, but probably that's not true, and everyone has their big rocky challenges in the first year, in some form. J has been looking for a job for nearly 3 months now, and we have had some major financial setbacks in the meantime, and finances have become our big trial. I have had to learn a new way of operating-- adjusted expectations, adjusted habits, adjusted "needs." I have not adjusted very gracefully. Some dreams have had to be put on hold-- offered up to God, to give back when He chooses. In the last couple weeks we have decided that J isn't going to continue with seminary this spring, and we won't try to go to Africa this summer. We hope he will be back in school this fall, and there will be other summers to go to Africa (we hope), but for now all of our focus is on him getting a job. He's is still working part-time at the seminary, but we need something that is full time, and isn't a 2-hour commute each way.
When I think about our circumstances in the last 5 months I see a lot that I would not have chosen, but I would have to be blind to not see how God has taken us on a faith journey that besides being really good for me/us, has also been a lot of fun. We live under the illusion in this part of the world that we can provide for ourselves, at least when it comes to material needs. When this illusion is taken away, in any small way, it is really scary, but also really amazing to see God show up and provide.
I could give so many examples. The bookshelves we were given by friends who were about to cart them off to Goodwill. They are virtually new and, as it turns out, exactly match the two bookshelves I already had (and love). That still blows me away, that God knew which bookshelves I had. He didn't just give me any old ones, but the exact ones I would have chosen. Certain other pieces of furniture I am less enamored with, but have learned to be grateful for all the same. We started off with some chairs, a card table, a desk, and those bookshelves-- and no money to even really think about buying furniture. So one day in September I was walking home from work, and what was sitting on the sidewalk waiting for trash pickup, but two dressers. I walked past them the first time, had a little mental argument with myself, then went back. They were ugly, but we needed them. So we rented a Zipcar and carted them home, and it has turned out to be a very good thing. I am even growing fond of mine. Same with the couches, which had been sitting in J's buddy's garage in Texas for several years, and which were not love at first sight (for me). I wasn't sure I wanted them to make the trip back to Boston with us. But God provided-- and with a slipcover, the one doesn't even look too bad.
The stories could go on. The point is, that God provides. Period. This morning we were in church, a rag-tag group of 30 in a cold church hall, and that church still feels kind of weird and foreign to me so I wasn't exactly overflowing with warm fuzzy feelings. My mind was jumping around to all kinds of random worries, and in the middle of one of the hymns I was worrying specifically about what would happen if we had to move to a different apartment next year and after all this time we've only painted half of the apartment and by the time we get it all painted and the way we like it we'll probably have to move and start all over and Oh Dear. Suddenly I realized with a jolt the words that my mouth was singing-- What He says we will do, where He sends we will go, Never fear, only trust and obey. What a clear rebuke. Our marching orders are so simple.
One more incredible faith journey story I have to share. The 30 Uganda orphans started school a couple weeks ago. I realized around New Year's that I only had about half of the money needed for their school fees for the year-- we were about $1000 short. I didn't know how it was going to happen. For a while I didn't do anything. Finally I fired off an email to a number of friends. Several ended up sending money, but it was the first response that floored me. A friend wrote back to say that whatever the balance was, he would cover it. An offer of a $1000, just like that. Other people ended up paying part of it as it turned out, but the generosity and more than that the abundance of God's provision just floored me. Later he wrote me to thank me for the opportunity to give, or something like that, and I just thought about how incredible the economy of God's kingdom is-- that we give because we have been given, and we give and bless others, and God really does have all the needs covered and along the way we get tied into each other's lives and learn the joy of giving and receiving.
There's a mental picture of giving that I have been carrying around since Christmas, and haven't been able to get out of my head. We went to a Christmas service at the same funky little church, and they had a very impromptu dramatization of the Christmas story as part of the service. As in, no one had costumes, they were all just kind of making it up as they went along, and it was a bit rough. Along came the three wise men, and one of the wise men was a young man with twisted legs, who walks with difficulty. The wise men knelt down to offer their gifts to Jesus, and this young man knelt with difficulty, and then couldn't get back up again by himself. One of the other wise men had to kind of heave him back up. I can't get over that image-- of this man with a twisted body (but who always seems to have a radiant smile on his face) kneeling to present a gift to Jesus, and not even able to do that without the help of someone else. What a picture of how we all are in a spiritual sense-- bringing what we have as twisted and broken beings, unable to come to God without the help of a community.
Sometimes marriage feels like a slumber party with my best friend that never ends, and I think, Life shouldn't be this good. Sometimes marriage feels like starring in my own romance movie, except so much better. Sometimes marriage feels kind of like being Siamese twins-- we're stuck together, from the little daily things to the big life decisions, we do it together, because there is no option to cut out and do our own thing. Some days I love it and think that I couldn't be more bone of his bones and flesh of his flesh than if we actually did share a heart and a pair of lungs. It is an incredible mystery-- and incredibly wonderful. Some days I want freedom, selfishness, space. Sometimes I want to scream, for days on end. Sometimes I am so tired, and all will to keep going, keep working out the communication, the relationship, how to love-- just dies.
In marriage there's no hiding from your spouse, and that can be scary, but more than that there's no hiding from yourself. That is the really scary part. All the selfishness and ugliness you'd shoved away somewhere comes out, and you have to look at your own heart, and there's no hiding. J and I think often of Eustace's dragon experience in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. You realize you're a dragon, a layer of your awful dragon-ness comes off, agonizingly, and yet there are just more layers to go. I am more in awe all the time of God's purpose in marriage-- to grow us and clean us up. But man, can it be painful.
I think most of all marriage is a faith journey. I think about our circumstances and I think we've had it particularly rough in the first 5 months, but probably that's not true, and everyone has their big rocky challenges in the first year, in some form. J has been looking for a job for nearly 3 months now, and we have had some major financial setbacks in the meantime, and finances have become our big trial. I have had to learn a new way of operating-- adjusted expectations, adjusted habits, adjusted "needs." I have not adjusted very gracefully. Some dreams have had to be put on hold-- offered up to God, to give back when He chooses. In the last couple weeks we have decided that J isn't going to continue with seminary this spring, and we won't try to go to Africa this summer. We hope he will be back in school this fall, and there will be other summers to go to Africa (we hope), but for now all of our focus is on him getting a job. He's is still working part-time at the seminary, but we need something that is full time, and isn't a 2-hour commute each way.
When I think about our circumstances in the last 5 months I see a lot that I would not have chosen, but I would have to be blind to not see how God has taken us on a faith journey that besides being really good for me/us, has also been a lot of fun. We live under the illusion in this part of the world that we can provide for ourselves, at least when it comes to material needs. When this illusion is taken away, in any small way, it is really scary, but also really amazing to see God show up and provide.
I could give so many examples. The bookshelves we were given by friends who were about to cart them off to Goodwill. They are virtually new and, as it turns out, exactly match the two bookshelves I already had (and love). That still blows me away, that God knew which bookshelves I had. He didn't just give me any old ones, but the exact ones I would have chosen. Certain other pieces of furniture I am less enamored with, but have learned to be grateful for all the same. We started off with some chairs, a card table, a desk, and those bookshelves-- and no money to even really think about buying furniture. So one day in September I was walking home from work, and what was sitting on the sidewalk waiting for trash pickup, but two dressers. I walked past them the first time, had a little mental argument with myself, then went back. They were ugly, but we needed them. So we rented a Zipcar and carted them home, and it has turned out to be a very good thing. I am even growing fond of mine. Same with the couches, which had been sitting in J's buddy's garage in Texas for several years, and which were not love at first sight (for me). I wasn't sure I wanted them to make the trip back to Boston with us. But God provided-- and with a slipcover, the one doesn't even look too bad.
The stories could go on. The point is, that God provides. Period. This morning we were in church, a rag-tag group of 30 in a cold church hall, and that church still feels kind of weird and foreign to me so I wasn't exactly overflowing with warm fuzzy feelings. My mind was jumping around to all kinds of random worries, and in the middle of one of the hymns I was worrying specifically about what would happen if we had to move to a different apartment next year and after all this time we've only painted half of the apartment and by the time we get it all painted and the way we like it we'll probably have to move and start all over and Oh Dear. Suddenly I realized with a jolt the words that my mouth was singing-- What He says we will do, where He sends we will go, Never fear, only trust and obey. What a clear rebuke. Our marching orders are so simple.
One more incredible faith journey story I have to share. The 30 Uganda orphans started school a couple weeks ago. I realized around New Year's that I only had about half of the money needed for their school fees for the year-- we were about $1000 short. I didn't know how it was going to happen. For a while I didn't do anything. Finally I fired off an email to a number of friends. Several ended up sending money, but it was the first response that floored me. A friend wrote back to say that whatever the balance was, he would cover it. An offer of a $1000, just like that. Other people ended up paying part of it as it turned out, but the generosity and more than that the abundance of God's provision just floored me. Later he wrote me to thank me for the opportunity to give, or something like that, and I just thought about how incredible the economy of God's kingdom is-- that we give because we have been given, and we give and bless others, and God really does have all the needs covered and along the way we get tied into each other's lives and learn the joy of giving and receiving.
There's a mental picture of giving that I have been carrying around since Christmas, and haven't been able to get out of my head. We went to a Christmas service at the same funky little church, and they had a very impromptu dramatization of the Christmas story as part of the service. As in, no one had costumes, they were all just kind of making it up as they went along, and it was a bit rough. Along came the three wise men, and one of the wise men was a young man with twisted legs, who walks with difficulty. The wise men knelt down to offer their gifts to Jesus, and this young man knelt with difficulty, and then couldn't get back up again by himself. One of the other wise men had to kind of heave him back up. I can't get over that image-- of this man with a twisted body (but who always seems to have a radiant smile on his face) kneeling to present a gift to Jesus, and not even able to do that without the help of someone else. What a picture of how we all are in a spiritual sense-- bringing what we have as twisted and broken beings, unable to come to God without the help of a community.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)