overcome

This morning I read the scripture in Revelations 2:17 when Jesus said,
"to him who overcomes I'll give to eat that hidden manna and a white stone with a new name written on it which no man knows except him who receives it."

The best definition I've heard recently for overcoming is this:
To overcome is to succeed in dealing with problems and difficulties. God knows that throughout life there are always unexpected problems, challenges, and difficulties to get through. It's not so much whether we will have these things or not but rather how we persevere through them and get the victory reward on the other side. There is a faith that's proved of more worth than gold and we are refined through the process of pain.

I recently enjoyed coffee with a friend who reminded me of that scripture where Jesus said that all things work together for good for those who love God. She mentioned that the problem is most people don't stick around long enough to find out what those good things are on the other side of the trial or challenge.

The thing about "heavenly manna" or bread from heaven is that it's symbolic for life substance. Jesus said He is the bread of life. He wants to give us life that never goes stale and it can happen in a minute. Those desert moments remind us that we are starving for something of real substance and the things that we've counted on in the past or relied upon to fill us up along the way will never truly be able to touch the soul issues that we wrestle with on the deepest levels. But what you get from heaven is going to give you life!

That's what I love about Jesus. He is Emmanuel, God with us. There will never be any guarantee for a smooth ride but you have every guarantee and every promise that God will be with you through it all.

Can you persevere even in weakness, trials, pain? Can you cry out with a desert song of praise?
We have reason to praise our God and I believe in the midst of praise we will abound in the ability to get through every problem and difficulty!

And what about this new name? My initial thought is this. Sometimes our life is marked by pain, disease, disappointment, discouragement. Maybe the new name is something about the new place God will bring you to once you've persevered! That gets me excited.

three solid weeks

Although it may not be the best Sprint Tri I will ever do, I am spending the next three months to train intensely for the Auburn Sprint Tri. It's supposed to be a rugged course and I'm not as prepared as I was for the one in London, but i want to get back in the saddle on this. I am also toying with the idea of doing the Pyramid Lake event later this summer. Excited about it but I need to get some serious swim time in and get my running back in shape. This past week in Southern Cali I was not motivated much at all to work out and so most of what I did was walk. I guess that's ok but not four weeks out to race day. Oh well. I'm hoping I can make it happen!

My moment

The trip to California was noteworthy on several accounts. My moment came the 2nd day of the Catalyst Conference. Brooke Fraser led worship with "The Desert Song".


I hope you'll check out the video and read the lyrics.


This is my prayer in the desert
And all that's within me feels dry
This is my prayer in my hunger and need
My God is the God who provides

And this is my prayer in the fire
in weakness or trial or pain
There is a faith proved
of more worth than gold
So refine me Lord through the flames

And I will bring praise
I will bring praise
No weapon formed against me shall remain
I will rejoice
I will declare
God is my victory and he is here

And this is my prayer in the battle
When triumph is still on it's way
I am a conqueror and co-heir with Christ
So firm on His promise I'll stand

All of my life
In every season
You are still God
I have a reason to sing
I have a reason to worship

This is my prayer in the harvest
when favor and providence flow
I know I'm filled to be emptied again
The seed I've received I will sow

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A much needed thing happened in that moment. I realized it's OK and that He is with me even in the desert moments.

airports

I love to people watch. Right now I'm sitting in the Reno/Tahoe International Airport and I'm people watching. :_ I'm always curious. Where are people going? Where are they coming from? It's so interesting to think that your life can cross another one's so quickly with no direct relationship to them. They are people. You are people. They need to take a flight somewhere. You need to take a flight somewhere. And that's the end of the relationship. Interesting and funny. This world we live in.

I'm looking forward to the next 9 days in So Cal. Lots to do, but no doubt FUN will be had in between it all!

Wish me safe travels.

Jen

creativity

I enjoyed sleeping in my own bed last night after being in Reno this past week and house/teen/dog sitting the past week. In a few small ways I'm not looking forward to the upcoming trip to Los Angeles. I'm definitely excited about what I'll be doing while in Los Angeles, but not exactly thrilled about sleeping in four different people's homes and a hotel over the next 9 nights. But I'm excited to share these experiences with my good friend Lara! That's a highlight of the upcoming trip and seeing some people I love and miss who currently live in Los Angeles is also a highlight for me. I'll be sure and take lots of pictures of the ocean! I'm sure I'll be jet-setting to the coast on every possible occasion :)

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I have realized that with all this moving around, I haven't really been able to settle into the creative flow that I would like to pursue. There have been so many adjustments with this new ministry position, that my schedule just seems choppy and chaotic. I know those are feelings but I think I'm sort of a homebody snob. I need to have a place that I can create the kind of atmosphere that is welcoming and warm for me and the ones I want to have around. That's hard to do when you're living with your parents.

My mom noticed a few pieces I painted and sketched while in Budapest and said, "I didn't know you did that." I was able to tell her about the Monday nights in Budapest where I had girls over and we painted and created things. For me, there's something medicinal about it. This is one of those things I'd like to set up again very soon.

I pulled out the guitar today and practiced some chord combinations, trying to find out the sounds I like. Martin Luther had a dream and I have one too - writing and playing my own song or two on that darn guitar. It doesn't seem like I catch on quick enough but I really haven't put that much energy into it. I do enjoy it and would love to learn more. It was fun today as I went through some old files and I actually found a song that my sister and I wrote about my Grandma, probably almost 4 years ago. It's actually pretty good, if I can remember to play it at the same tempo I originally had when I created it.

The third aspect of creativity I'd like to explore is sewing. I almost wandered into a fabric store to get a pattern and start with something. But then I thought I should take one of the shirts I really like and own and make that my pattern. We'll see. I was on my way somewhere when the thought crossed my mind and didn't have a chance to do it.

Finally, if it all happens as Lara and I have been talking about this past year, we will be moving to the Sacramento area. I hope we can find a house for rent with an extra bedroom for guests and for a craft room. If we get a house, (even if we don't), I want to start a garden. Veggies that won't die easily - tomatoes, salad and then some fruits - strawberries or something.

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I've been using the RICE on my knee. I think it helps. Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. I am about to go for a run again and in the off times, I try and keep it iced and up. I think it's helping do something!

He has told you.....

I just came back from a two mile walk and as I was listening to worship music on the I-pod, I got to thinking about what it is in life that God is really after in us as humans.

I mean, there are so many variations of Christianity in the world and so many styles and people who claim Christ-following as a way of life, but when God looks at us all, what are the things He's looking for?

The reason I was asking is because I still don't feel as though I have it all figured out. As I mused over these things in the beautiful sunshine, I took in the desert landscape in Nevada (not the most picturesque for me, but it is what it is).

Then I was reminded of the scripture in Micah 6:8
"He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you? But to do justice, love kindness and to walk humbly with your God."

Enough said. Now if I could just focus on that.

So what does it look like to do justice?
What does it look like to love kindness?
What does it look like to walk humbly with God?

The musing continues.

10 things to live by...

I'm house/dog sitting this week for Jeff and Teri and I thought I'd pass this bit of inspiration on to you.

This is hanging on their fridge.

1. Spread beauty.
2. Do what you love.
3. Love what you do.
4. Keep it simple.
5. Laugh out loud.
6. Go with the flow.
7. Be real.
8. Focus on the postiive.
9. Do your best.
10. Just breathe.

The only one of these that I sort of disagree with, atleast at times, is #6. Sometimes as Christians, even as human beings, we need to stand up for what is right, true and real and forgo the "flow."

That's all. :) Happy reading.

the future....is exciting.

My friend Lara and I have been talking for awhile about getting a place together in the next year. She suggested the Sacramento area. I was OK with that but not really sold on the idea.

While I was in Nashville, I spent time with my friend Amber who is working for Mercy Ministries in Nashville. They are opening a home in Sacramento this July. Divine coincidence? Maybe. My friend Lara is a perfect fit here. And I just need to be near an airport. I'd love to work part-time for Mercy too.

We'll see what the future holds! Whatever is ahead, it's going to be fantastic.

Audrey Hepburn's Beauty Tips

So I'm staying at the Peterson's this week. Uneventful really.

One thing I found interesting that I've read before are beauty tips in Teri's bathroom.
Thank you, Audrey Hepburn.

"For attractive lips, speak words of kindness
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry
For beautiful hair, let a child run his/her fingers through it once a day.

For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone
People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed and redeemed.
Never throw out anybody.
Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm.
As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.

The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears,
the figure that she carries,
or the way she combs her hair.
The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.
The beauty of a woman is not in a facial beauty mark,
but true beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul.
It is the caring that she lovingly gives,
the passion that she shows.
And the beauty of a woman with passing years, only grows!"

Slumdog

This weekend I watched Slumdog Millionaire with family. I have been wanting to see it for a long time. Although I'm not quite sure why it got best film, I definitely liked the movie story. Then again, why does any film get the best film award? I think much of what is out today isn't that great. Oh well.

Slumdog for me was a strong reminder of 70% of the world that lives in abject poverty compared to what we know and experience in the US. It was a reminder of the kids around the world living in these conditions and knowing very little else.

Of course I also loved the romance in the story line. A childhood romance that lasts through life......that's painfully good.

I'm enjoying the song "Paper Planes" from the soundtrack and a few others that I just added on my playlist, so you can listen if you'd like. Great movie and great soundtrack for working out! :)

It's 5 am and I'm up

I can hardly believe it's April. Where does the time go? These days are flying by.

This morning I'm up early. I went to bed at 9 pm after watching "Yes man" with the family last night.

Today is Easter and I usually get very nostalgic around this time of year. There are many reasons for this but the most prominent reason is because it was this month as a junior in high school that I became a Christ-follower. Perspectives changed. Friendships changed and my lifesyle changed quite dramatically. I guess you could say that for the first time I was alive inside. This may sound very corny but colors were brighter. My love for people was stronger. And life was abounding in hope. Nothing fazed me. I was definitely in a unique place and joy was my strength. Nothing would get me down. I was like a sponge and wanted to learn everything I could about this God who had so lavishly pursued me and loved me through dark days. His presence in my life made all the difference and I was ready to shed off everything from the past. I was looking forward to a bright future.

I've never really looked back. Much like a race where you set out to finish, my heart has been to finish well. And my life has been so incredibly rich and full. The people I've come to know, the perspectives I've come to share, the places I've been able to travel, the dreams and the lives that have also been shaped by this amazing God and His love are often times unbelievable to me.

Yet, life is so daily and there are discouragements, disappointments and challenges that come our way. Sometimes things faze me now. Joy is still my strength but it's different. Maybe life has been tempered with a wisdom perspective. I'm much more aware of the fallen nature and the tendency of mankind towards self and sin. I'm much more aware of how painful it can be to be human sometimes. Maybe I was a little more optimistic in the beginning. Not necessarily more optimistic about who God is in our lives but more optimistic about people. Don't get me wrong. I still love, still believe, still hope the best. But I'm also aware. I realize in a unique way our humanity is still very present. That doesn't completely bum me out.

What does bum me out on an Easter morning is realizing how many people I know (especially here in Reno, but other places too) who have been shipwrecked along the way in this race called life. And I constantly mull over in my mind, what it's going to take to finish this race strong, to live will. This morning my mind is thinking of others who have gone before me that I respected or trusted, whose families I love so dearly, and now their lives are washed up on a rocky shore, boat destroyed and seemingly no place to go. For me, I think divorce among Christians is so painful because your life is attached to so many other people and somehow God intended for marriage to be a positive, good reflection of His love for people. Yet we fall short and we fall so far away from that ideal.

As I ponder these things and pray for these people, I'm also asking God this Easter season to resurrect whatever has died in me so that I will make it to the other side of resurrection with faith, hope and love abounding within. I don't want to become cold, calloused or indifferent about the things of God. Yet, it's so easy to do in the midst of life.

Then I read this quote from Charles Spurgeon:
"Our drops of sorrow may well be forgotten in the ocean of His griefs; but how high ought our love to rise! Come in, O strong and deep love of Jesus, like the sea at the flood in spring tides, cover all my powers, drown all my sins, wash out all my cares, lift up my earth-bound soul, and float it right up to my Lord's feet, and there let me lie, a poor broken shell, washed up by His love, having no virtue or value; and only venturing to whisper to Him that if He will put His ear to me, He will hear within my heart faint echoes of the vast waves of His own love which have brought me where it is my delight to lie, even at His feet for ever."
This Easter my prayer is for each person reading this blog, that their hearts would be strengthened in that unique faith in Christ and given joy for the journey, that things that have died would be renewed and hope would blossom into new found treasure along this journey called life.

Happy Easter!

What remains the same is change & an unchanging hiding place

Thinking about how my life has changed now that I've been stateside and home for a few months, I began to look back on the things I've experienced in life this far. The one thing I can say for sure is that change is constant. In relationships, in purpose, in geographic locations, in wants, needs and desires, I'm finding that my life is often changing and transforming into something that I believe has become even more beautiful with time.

Although I never would have seen my life play out the way it has thus far, I have no regrets and I've thoroughly enjoyed trusting God in this life process. I've lived such an incredibly full life and for that I'm so grateful.

This morning I read in Joel 3:16 that God is a safe hiding place, a "granite safe" house for your children.

What does that mean in reality?

The night I was flying out of Nashville there were flash-flood rains and a few times Daniel and I could hardly see the road ahead while driving to the airport. Apparently, there were tornado warnings in the area. I vaguely remember hearing sounds of thunder or lightening and being reminded that one of the safest places to be is in a vehicle because of the rubber on the tires.

Maybe that's what God is saying here.
He's like the tire rubber that diffuses electrical shocks and helps us get through the challenges and trials of life.
For this unchanging hiding place, I'm thankful.
For the changes that remain, I'm thankful too and I found my anchor -- my anchor is in you, God.