Accountable

Today Drew and I were running a little late for bible class….as usual….despite all of our very best efforts lately, there is always something that makes us late….well, actually it isn’t too hard to figure out. We have 2 children under the age of 3! It really wasn’t that late, probably only 2 minutes, but by the time we got Houston settled down and in his bible class, we were definitely in late status! In an attempt to find our usual class, we stumbled into what seems to be a really great class about marriage. I think we will stay there this quarter.

                One of the ideas we talked about today was how your spouse should be your best friend and, over time, you grow to love that person on a much deeper level than when you “fell in love”. You grow in love. Some examples: You can enjoy each other’s company without anything physical, you know you belong with that person and that God gave them to you, and you start knowing how the other person thinks.

                Drew and I have been together almost 7 years now, and even after that short of a time, in the span of a lifetime, I can see how much we have changed and how much our love has matured. We have faced and survived some things I never would have imagined back then. He has definitely seen me at my worst, and somehow decided it was still better to stick around. I’m so thankful for him weathering the storms so far. It’s made us stronger and I know we probably haven’t faced the worst yet.

                Lately, although it doesn’t seem like the biggest deal to most people, I have really really been struggling with my body. This probably seems a little vain and superficial to most people, but I have struggled with my body shape and size pretty much my entire life, and I was bullied a lot in junior high, by some extremely mean boys. When people say things enough, you start to believe them. So anyway, it’s always been a sensitive topic to me. I have never looked like a model…I’m thrilled when my clothing size is in the single digits! While I was pregnant with Cameron, I only gained like 25 pounds, which is pretty normal, but I am having the hardest time getting that last 10 to come off. ALL of my clothes are snugger than I would like, and I just can’t get my normal shape back, even with eating healthy and exercising. I’m not just sitting around, so it’s very frustrating that my body won’t do what I want it to!

                A couple of weeks ago, while I was shopping with Drew I just started crying in the dressing room. I put all the clothes back on the rack and walked out of the store. He was both a little confused and frustrated. I say frustrated, because he constantly tells me how beautiful I am….so why don’t I ever listen? That was the gist of the conversation we had once we got out to the car. Then I got really upset, because lately I don’t even feel like a beautiful person on the inside.

                Just as most guys’ minds are wired, Drew is always looking for a solution. That very night he pulled me off the couch and put in a beach body workout (Insanity….if you are wondering which one). We have been going strong for a couple weeks now, and I can honestly say there have never been so many days I wanted to kill him….at least in a row! Haha! It’s definitely an insane workout series, but I feel pretty good because it’s kicking his butt too! We usually do the workout immediately when he gets home from work, so for him that’s immediately after doing PT. He told me that I am his only motivation to come home and work out for a second time each day. I told him he is my only motivation for doing it at all! It’s amazing what you will stay motivated to do, when you have someone holding you accountable.

                As for the “beautiful on the inside” part, I felt there was no better place to start then back at the basics. We have started reading our bibles together every night. Although this is something we both occasionally did on our own, it’s been a long time since we sat down and made a point to do this with each other. We do this after the boys go to bed, before we go to bed, and I absolutely love that time together.  We’ve always known it’s something we SHOULD do on a daily basis, but it’s easy to get distracted and lose track of what is really important. I don’t want to say I don’t enjoy reading the bible, but it’s definitely MORE enjoyable together.     

                In my most vulnerable moments, when I am feeling my most self-conscious, I can always count on Drew to love me in just the right way.  I’ve got my best friend at my side, holding me accountable for my life.

My Best Friend

Recently I read an article about how the best marriages are a deep friendship. I completely agree with the thought of your spouse being your best friend and how your marriage should be the most important relationship on earth.

Drew and I have told each other countless times that we are each other’s best friends. I have been thinking a lot lately of how our relationship started and how far it has come, so I wanted to share a few of the reasons I knew Drew would be the perfect guy to spend eternity with! (These are all pre-wedding events J)

-In our accounting class, before we started dating, I told him very bluntly, on numerous occasions, “The smell of your maple donut makes me want to throw up. Would you hurry up and eat it?” He still asked me out.

-The first time I went over to his house to watch a movie with him, I walked into his room, and, reading the strange look on my face (watching movies in a boy’s room had never even crossed my mind as an acceptable option), he immediately put his futon into the couch position. He waited until we were almost 3 movies in before sitting too close or trying to hold my hand.

-He asked me to prom almost 4 months in advance (to a high school girl, that’s a pretty big deal!)

-On my 18^th birthday, he was spending the weekend at my grandparents’ house, where I was living at the time. Through the bathroom door, he heard me getting sick, and without any hesitation, he just opened the door and came in to check on me. Of course I was completely humiliated, but it’s nice to have someone by your side when you are that miserable. He stuck by me over the next three days, as I battled the worst stomach flu of my life, and it didn’t scare him away at all!

-He taught me how to drive a stick shift without making me cry! This was a pretty big deal to me, because the two people who had tried previously either yelled or laughed at me, and both times I ended up frustrated and in tears! Now I can drive a manual with complete confidence and some would argue even better than him….lol

-When I moved back in with my parents and my sister and niece lived there, he spent countless hours playing on the floor with her.

-When his parents’ comments actually had me convinced that being with me would be holding him back and jeopardizing his future, I wrote him a break up letter and handed it to him outside of his house in my car. He ran inside, slammed the door, locked me out and got into a pretty big argument with his dad about me…. He stood up for me and our relationship!

-I received a full-ride scholarship to a Christian university out of state, and I really wanted to go, but I was also in love with Drew, who was a year behind me in school. Drew never once asked me to stay behind for him. (Although I obviously did….)

-He let me put eyeliner on him and use him as the subject for a somewhat controversial photography project that would later be displayed at the local community college. To this day, I have no idea what ever happened to all of my prints.

-He proposed to me with M&M’s

-When his parents asked us to live together instead of getting married so young, he flat out told them “No, we don’t believe in that”. When they threatened to kick him out because he wanted to get married he said, “Okay”.

-He spent the weeks leading up to our wedding stuffing and addressing hundreds of wedding invitation envelopes, bagging up a variety of pink candies into individual treat bags  and tying them with a ribbon bow, and even spent the 4^th of July at our kitchen table with my dad making all the centerpieces for our reception! Who knew that guys would be so much better (and patient!!) with making topiaries…something he probably didn’t even know existed until I asked him to make them!

-On our wedding day, we opted to have pictures taken before the ceremony in a different location. On the way to the church, he stopped at Dairy Queen and brought me my favorite flavor of blizzard

Of course there are the obvious reasons of being able to trust him with my deepest secrets and share anything and everything with him, but these are just a few other qualities I value in a friendship.

From My Dad

              Anyone who knows my dad would easily agree that I am like him in a lot of ways! I get my stubbornness, my freckles, and, unfortunately, my very non-petite body from him, among many other things.

                Another thing he has “given” me is my addiction to tea! He and my mom both drink hot tea every morning. My mom isn’t too much of a breakfast eater though, so that’s why I don’t really give her the credit here. I remember sitting at the breakfast table with my dad when I was little and wanting to be just like him. So at about 5 or 6 years old, my morning routine of a cup of Lipton tea began. Some of you may shake your heads at that, but there are worse things a six year old can drink everyday! I drink my tea plain, so the only negative aspect is the caffeine (and from a dental perspective….staining!), which is slight in comparison to coffee or soda. To this day, I drink a cup of hot tea every morning. Occasionally I will drink coffee, (which is something I wasn’t influenced by either parent to drink, since neither one of them can stand the taste of coffee) but it’s usually tea.

                When my dad came a few weeks ago to visit, he said he had a present in his carry-on for me. My mom and I both kind of looked at him funny. She obviously wasn’t behind this, and he usually doesn’t bring gifts, so we were both curious. He handed me a box, and inside was a mug with red roses and lightning bolts and the words “Never underestimate the power of a hissie fit”. I didn’t really know how to react, because I didn’t know if he was making fun of me or what this was all about.

                Then he explained the true meaning of the words and I really love the mug.  

                Here is the story behind it:  “Life is all about give and take. But some issues can't be compromised. When the situation calls for drastic and dramatic measures, you have to draw a line in the sand, climb up on a soapbox, and protect the hill you're willing to die on. It's not easy . . . anything worth fighting for never is. But the most noble thing you can do is stand up for what is right, no matter the cost. But sometimes your voice can drown amid the roar of the masses. Once in a while you have to stomp your feet, scream at the top of your lungs, and throw a few lightning bolts to be heard. Never underestimate the power of a "hissie fit".”

                I would say that this is an attitude my dad has also given me. I feel like this is how he lives his life.

                This also made me start to think about a lot in my life. Sometimes it really IS necessary to throw a hissie fit. I also realized that some people in my life have witnessed a lot of these fits, while others probably have no clue where I stand on some issues. I’m not saying I think it’s necessary to walk down the street rambling and shouting at everyone who crosses your path and disagrees with you. However, why do I treat some significant people in my life like they aren’t important enough to know how I really feel and where I stand with some issues? I can think of several people who don’t really understand my life and many aspects of it, because I’ve never had a deep enough conversation with them to even bring up such issues. On the other hand, how many people in my life have been beaten to death by me standing up for what I thought was right when it really wasn’t a big deal at all? Sometimes I think I should have “picked my battles” and agreed to disagree. It’s a tricky line, and, when it should be “black and white”, why I have put so much “gray” in my life?

The Man Behind the Name

A lot of people have asked us why we picked the name Cameron Jay, so I wanted to take a few minutes to explain.

                I want to start out by saying that jokes about why we aren’t naming him Austin or Dallas, or whatever Texas town people can think of in the moment, aren’t funny. I will never be rude to your face, but please know that question gets so old and I am so annoyed on the inside when people think they are being so clever!! Houston’s name has nothing to do with Texas. He is actually named after one of the attorneys my mom used to work for when I was very little. I always liked the name, and as I grew up and learned what a great group of attorneys my mom worked for (most of them were related), I knew it would be a great choice. Drew also had a friend in grade school named Houston, so he liked the idea also (although that isn’t the person we named our son after). Obviously Houston’s middle name, Andrew, is after Drew.

                I just tried looking up the meaning of the name Cameron, and the results were that it’s a Scottish name meaning crooked or bent nose. That’s pretty funny to me, because I have honestly never looked into that. I guess we’ll see in a few days just how appropriate that is!! We just both liked the name Cameron. His first name has no other significance than that. It doesn’t seem to be in the list of most popular names lately, which was of huge importance to us! We don’t want him going to kindergarten with 10 other Cameron’s, just spelled differently (like the whole Aidan, Brayden, Caden thing lately!!). Of course no offense to those of you who chose those names!!

                However, his middle name, Jay, holds quite a bit of significance to us. We wanted to choose a family member to name him after, but it had to be someone worthy of that honor and it had to be a name we actually liked. For example, an obvious choice would have been my father, but I am not a fan of the names Bradley or Keith, so he was out of the running (sorry Grandma!). We tossed around a few possibilities and both easily came to the conclusion that he should be named after my mom’s dad, my Grandpa Jay.

                My Grandpa Jay is the only grandfather I ever really knew, since my dad’s father passed away when I was three. Drew and I are both very close to him, and love that man so much! We call him Gramps.

                Gramps was born in 1937, the sixth of eight children. A lot of people in that generation grew up with very little, but it’s safe to say that his family survived on the lower end of “poor”. He has been described as kind of a “runt” of the family and spent a lot of his childhood very sick, but he was definitely born a fighter! From a very young age, he knew what it would take and did what he could to survive. He has told me that growing up in a family that large, with such rough and rowdy siblings, you had to fight for every meal you ate – if you didn’t eat quick, you didn’t eat! He delivered newspapers and even gathered glass bottles to help pay for the things he needed and wanted, such as going to the “show”.

                He struggled a lot in school, and he has told me how mean the other kids were. While kids now complain about having to wear uniforms, he would have given anything to wear a uniform so the other kids wouldn’t know how poor he was. He dropped out of high school, partly because of illness, but mostly because it was such a struggle for him. It was a battle he didn’t feel was important enough to fight. Without a lot of family support and influence, I imagine I wouldn’t have seen the importance back then either! However, after a lot of convincing from one of his older brothers, he eventually returned and graduated and I am so proud of him for doing so! He also overcame his struggles with reading – there is always a book sitting by his recliner (the television remote is always close by too, haha, but honestly he probably reads way more than he watches tv!).

                Gramps met my Gramm when she was 14. She was living with his oldest brother and his wife, as a foster child (someday I will write about her life and what an amazing woman she is…). He was 18 and wanted to marry her, but she insisted on waiting until she was done with high school. Her senior year of high school, she graduated at semester and they were married at the end of January. She had to get special permission from her father, since she wouldn’t turn 18 until March of that year. This past January they celebrated their 53^rd anniversary!

                In 1965, when my mom was five years old, they bought their house on Kearney Street, where they still live now. Back then it was considered an “All-American” neighborhood, with very nice houses and kids always playing in the streets. It has changed A LOT over the years, but their house is one of those that stands out as one that is taken care of. The yard always looks great, the snow is always shoveled off the sidewalks, and you can tell that the people who live there actually care and take pride in the place they call home. It’s not like they are living in the ghetto, but it’s easy to see which houses are now neglected rentals, and which ones are still home to the original owners!

                Gramps worked extremely hard to provide for Gramm and their three daughters. Even now, at the age of almost 75, he is only partially retired. He still works two and half days a week. I imagine he will work until the day he dies! This seems like a cliché phrase, but he has really made a life for himself. He came from nothing and worked for everything he has! Neither Gramps nor Gramm is bitter about their childhood or their struggles in life, which is also impressive to me. That’s the kind of person I really look up to!

                Even Gramps would tell you that he was (and still is a little bit) rough around the edges. To illustrate what I mean by this, the first time my dad met him, he was drunk and was threatening to punch my dad in the face. However, he completely changed his life! Close to thirty years ago he completely gave up drinking AND smoking – cold turkey! My mom has always told me it was because of his grandkids (she didn’t want us around all of that), which I find touching! That’s how grandparents should really be!! I honestly can’t even picture him any other way than he is now!

                Gramps has the biggest heart of anyone I know (well, except for Gramm, but that’s for a different blog!). He is the kind of guy who would give you the shirt off his back if you asked for it! He is always willing to lend a hand to help out in any way you can think of! I still remember once when my parents (due to a huge miscommunication) left me at the mall when I was about ten. Gramps was the only one I could get a hold of and he raced across town immediately to come get his crying granddaughter! Their doors (and spare bedrooms and couch and fridge) are always open, anytime, whether they are there or not! We all have our own keys and know that we are welcome anytime we want or need! In fact, I have lived with my grandparents twice in my life (the first time for eight months and then three more a few years later!).

                I also have to mention what a fun, and slightly crazy, guy he is! He and Gramm went out dancing a lot in their younger years, and he is an excellent dancer. At my wedding reception he was right there in the circle with me and a group of my girlfriends! He still goes out on the roller rink or ice rink with his grandkids and great-grandkids! He rides his bike and walks all over town as well. One of the things I remember most about staying the night with them was going to play putt-putt golf. We went all the time!! He is also always up for any card game or board game any of the kids want to play! Other talents you can add to the list include boxing, water skiing, hunting, fishing, golfing, bowling, and diving…. There’s probably not anything he wouldn’t try!

                He loves all of his grandchildren, and doesn’t play favorites. He also treats all of our significant others like they are a part of the family too! He is so proud of Drew, in fact, that sometimes it’s nauseating! He is the number one cheerleader for all of us! I remember MANY school plays where I was completely mortified to hear “Go (embarrassing nickname!)!!!!” from the stands! Now it means the world to me that he was there, though!        Even now that I live so far away, he still knows what is going on in my life (and Drew’s and Houston’s).

                My point here isn’t all the significant contributions he has made to society or all the great things he has done in life. What’s important to Drew and me is that he is significant in OUR lives! We couldn’t think of anyone we would rather name our son after!

Priorities

This past Sunday afternoon we had planned a boating trip with a group of our guy friends here (people that work with Drew). Unfortunately the wind prevented us from boating, but we still enjoyed an afternoon being sandblasted at the beach and a fun dinner followed by all of them spoiling Houston rotten at the arcade attached to the restaurant.

                This made me think of all of our friends from Drew’s last unit, and the bonds they all shared. It was different than the situation here. Here they are all good friends, but it’s more of a competitive type relationship, comparing grades and such. It’s not the same type of brotherhood that develops when you are with people for several years and spend a lot of time with them, sometimes even relying on them for survival.

                Drew’s previous job was as a medic for an infantry battalion. He joined his last unit in the spring of 2008 and deployed with them for 12 months to Afghanistan in 2009-2010. In February 2011, we went on a camping trip with a group of our medic friends at this beautiful lake in North Carolina. I don’t think I will ever forget this trip.

                Drew is always honest with me about his job. I don’t want him to sugar coat things for me. I want to know up front if he will be in danger. Obviously there are confidential things he can’t share with me, so he doesn’t break any rules, but I feel I am pretty informed and have a realistic perspective of what he faces day to day. Deployments are a little different though. It’s impossible to know everything he does every day. It’s also impossible to know all of the details about those dreaded phone calls you receive way too often, informing you of “incidents” and paratroopers whose lives were lost, or those who were injured. I’m not even sure I would want to know all the details, honestly.

                The thing about infantrymen is that they are on the front lines, and their medics are right there with them. Drew was technically a “treatment” medic, so theoretically he stayed at a treatment facility, but he spent several months of the year he was in Afghanistan out “on the line” with the infantry companies. Even being back at the FOB didn’t guarantee safety. It was usually just some sort of tent –like building. He saw plenty of action there as well.

                Back to the camping trip…. Two of the medics we went with were purple heart recipients and one of the medics was attached to the company that saw the most action, hands down, enduring firefights that lasted days at time. That night as we sat around the campfire, they all relived their war horror stories and shared their experiences with each other. I think it’s impossible to even try to understand what they went through, so I will never claim to “get it”, but it definitely painted a vivid picture in my mind when I heard how the events unfolded from their own perspective. One of the worst feelings for a medic is when he or she can’t do anything (at least that’s what I gathered that night and from all the other stories Drew has shared with me). As they talked about those who never made it home, my heart broke.

                Yes, it’s their job, and when they entered the military, they knew what they would potentially face, but it doesn’t always seem “real” to the rest of us, until you hear stories like the ones they told.

                Drew got out of that unit in August 2011, to start training for his new job, but those guys will always be his brothers. At the beginning of 2012 they deployed back to Afghanistan for approximately 9 months this time. In early April, we received the news, of one of the paratroopers who was killed in action. Although he wasn’t the first of this deployment, this one really affected both of us. Suddenly all of the deployment emotions we had tucked away resurfaced, and it all seemed too real again. The young wife this soldier left behind has been so strong through all of this. I can’t even begin to imagine what she is going through, but it’s been so heartbreaking to think about. I can’t even think of how I would tell someone as young as Houston that daddy will never be coming home.

                Unfortunately, stories like theirs are not uncommon and they aren’t limited to military families. Just this weekend I saw two facebook statuses asking for prayers for young families who had unexpectedly lost their fathers.

                For me, hearing stories like this really puts everything into perspective. It makes me cling tighter to those I love and enjoy the smallest of moments that much more! It’s so easy to take the people you love for granted. The reality of life is, though, that it can end in the blink of an eye.

                Although I tell Houston how much I love him every day, several times a day, I hope he really sees it. I hope I am not making myself too busy for him.  I can tell you that lately, one of the ways I have enjoyed some extra time with him is not cutting off the number of books we read. He frequently gets 4-5 books before naptime and usually 2-3 before bedtime. I mean, really, what am I too “busy” doing that I can’t spend five extra minutes reading his favorite book to him? This is the first time in a long time that I haven’t been in school or working, so I really don’t have ANY excuses now!

                The same is true of my relationship with Drew. A lot of dirty dishes sit in the sink until morning time, just so we can get that extra 15 minutes of alone time, before we go to bed. This must have been a wake up call to him as well, because there have been a lot of adorable post it notes left on the kitchen counter, telling me how much he loves me and to have a good day.

                I know this was kind of a long train of thought to follow, but this has really been on my mind a lot lately the past few weeks. I guess the biggest point I’m trying to make is to make sure that the priorities in my life are WORTH being important!

               

Getting in Shape

As my due date quickly approaches, one of the things I am most looking forward to is getting my body back into shape. I’m not the skinniest or most athletic person but I LOVE working out and I have missed it so much! This pregnancy has been especially difficult for me because I had to quit exercising pretty much altogether right from the beginning.

Due to a pre-existing hip/lower back injury that was provoked by a combination (most likely) of being pregnant and standing on my feet for the majority of my 12 hour shifts at the dentist office in the most awkward and uncomfortable positions imaginable, I was barely able to walk some days, let alone hit the gym. After a few months of physical therapy, which really helped dull the pain, but didn’t erase the problem,  I was released until after the baby is born. Hopefully the problem will just resolve on its own, but if not, it will require an MRI and who knows what else…. But I’m straying from my point a little bit.

Now that we no longer have a membership at a gym with daycare provided, Drew bought me a double jogging stroller a few months ago. We’ve used it quite a few times to walk around the track that is located (conveniently!!!) just a couple blocks from our house. I absolutely LOVE it so far, but I can’t wait to strap my tennis shoes on and really take it for a spin. (Ask me again how much I love running around the end of June, when I realize how severely out of shape I am, while running in the hottest months Florida has!! LOL)

In addition to that, I have a true “health nut” friend who got me hooked on juicing. Although I haven’t done any juice fasts like she does to “detox”, I love it so far. Drew and I try to drink green drink (a combo of spinach, celery, cucumber, parsley, pear, green apple, papaya, and lemon) about 3 times a week. Even Houston likes it. One of my newest pregnancy cravings is carrot/celery/apple juice, which I make a couple times a week as well (I would probably drink that every day if it wasn’t such a pain to peel all the carrots!)

I have also traded in my other favorite pregnancy craving, frosted shredded wheat, for organic, plain old shredded wheat. I have to admit that the taste isn’t really that disappointing though, if you are wondering! I’ve also been trying to add a lot more fresh vegetables and fruits to all of our meals. We are pretty healthy eaters, but over the last few months we’ve gotten a little lazy, just due to the convenience of it! I really don’t like to cook, but I’m doing my best to only eat out a couple times a week, like on the weekend.

I feel like we are on the right track for our bodies, but more importantly we’ve both recently committed to making our hearts healthier too!

Our preacher has been teaching a series of lessons on the “war” of Christianity and preparing ourselves for the “battlefield”. This past week was a huge wake up call to me, personally. He entitled it “Basic Training for the Christian Soldier”.  The lesson outlined what we must believe, what we must know, and what we must train to do. It was actually quite embarrassing for me to admit what I really didn’t know. Even though I learned all of this growing up, it’s amazing how much of it didn’t really stick with me. For example, he said we should be able to quickly locate a verse in Nahum, when someone asks us, without breaking into a sweat. Yeah, I can tell you I wouldn’t be able to do that! I’d be flipping through the pages like a hot mess! Some of the things we must know included books of the Bible, the 10 commandments, the three points of the gospel, the three points of the great commission, the storyline of major events in the Bible, and minimal verses that should be committed to memory. He gave a list of twenty basics every Christian should know and there were at least half of those I wouldn’t feel confident discussing with a non-Christian.

This is how I’ve been neglecting my heart.

On Sunday night, we all got an awesome handout with more of this outlined for us. (In fact when I called my mom and told her about it, she requested copies for her and my dad!) The first two pages are 100 verses to memorize. They are broken into sub-categories such as the word, prayer, baptism, victory over sin, faith, return of Christ, and consequences. There are 39 total. In order to set a realistic goal, Drew and I have committed to memorizing one verse per week from each of the categories. The other two pages list the twenty basics as well as some basic Bible literacy. It’s my understanding that we’ll be discussing this handout in the weeks to come, and I am so looking forward to this. I think this is seriously going to take the “fear factor” out of teaching others. If I don’t even know WHY I believe something, how am I going to convince anyone else they should believe it too?

In addition to all of this, I have been influenced by another friend to complete the 90 day challenge. This is a 90 day plan to read the entire Bible. I’m only a few days in, so I’m sure my motivation will start to wear off a little, but I feel like it’s going to be so worth it! How will I know how to use my weapon in battle (the Bible) if I don’t even know what it says?

So this is our plan to get back into shape.

He also told them this parable: “Can a blind man lead a blind man? Will they not both fall into a pit? A student is not above his teacher, but everyone who is fully trained will be like his teacher. – Luke 6:39-40 (I stole this from Sunday morning’s sermon)

Jesus answered, “It is written: Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” – Matthew 4:4 (This is actually the first verse we memorized, and I think it can be applied here perfectly! Side note: this verse is actually really easy for us to remember because it’s the verse to one of my favorite songs!)

Here is the link to the 90 day challenge, which I stole from my friend.

http://www.thebrooknetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/BibleIn90Days.pdf

Get to work!

Last week Drew and I received a welcome packet from our church. In the packet was a directory (complete with photos – which I was so thankful for because I am terrible at remembering people’s names!), some info about the church and different ministries/groups to get involved with, and some paperwork for us to return. They just wanted to know our address, phone numbers, email address, etc, as well as when our birthdays are, when and where we got married, and when and where we got baptized (To be honest, I had to call my mom and ask! All I could remember about myself is that it was a Saturday night in August and everyone who came went to Dairy Queen afterwards.  Haha!). There were also two optional service surveys included, so we could fill out the areas where we would be interested in serving. We filled everything out and mailed it back to the church secretary that day. I am guessing that they probably arrived Friday.

Sunday morning as we were dropping Houston off to bible class, I was pulled aside and “claimed” as a teacher for the toddler bible class. Sunday afternoon Drew got a phone call asking if he could be a greeter for the month of June. (Yes, MY Drew volunteered to be a greeter! I was very proud of him for going out of his comfort zone a little bit there, because if any of you know him, you know he’s pretty shy. He isn’t rude or anything, but he usually isn’t the one to just strike up a conversation with everyone who enters the room) Then during a casual conversation Sunday evening on the playground, our preacher also remembered that Drew was willing to help with any sort of construction projects at the building. Whenever the new playground padding stuff comes in, they’ll be calling Drew to help out. We were both a little surprised, but VERY impressed with how quickly the word had spread and how willing they were to put us to work! While I don’t feel it’s a church’s sole responsibility to get new members involved, it’s definitely a welcoming feeling. I have always felt it’s pointless to give out surveys if you are never going to actually ask people to help out in the areas they are willing to. How would a new member know where they are needed unless the need is made known?

As a little side note to this, we also received an email in regards to Drew being a greeter. Greeters wear name tags, which cost $7.50. I was asked if I wanted to order one as well. This made me think of our last church where everyone had magnetic name tags they were supposed to wear every Sunday and then leave in their mailbox before going home. I accidentally wore mine home one day, so I left it on our kitchen counter. I was baking cookies one day and smelled something burning in the oven. I looked at the oven rack and found a bubbling piece of plastic draped over the metal bars of the oven rack and the magnetic remains of my name tag stuck to the side of the cookie sheet. Something crazy like that would only happen to ME! Hahaha! So in my email response, I said we would just order the one for Drew.

I think everything in life happens for a reason. Drew and I were just discussing this the other night. Neither one of us really feels that his schooling is the reason we are here. Yes, that is what consumes like 80% of his time and energy, but there is a bigger purpose! We needed this refreshing new start and new “family” to be a part of. We already know that neither one of us will want to leave at the end of the year, but my hope is that we’ll carry this new attitude and perspective to wherever we end up next!

“The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ” 1 Corinthians 12:12