Oasis
February 9, 2010
I don’t know what it would be for you, the thing that most recharges. The thing that brings you both quiet and invigoration. Not an ordinary kind of rest or recreation, but a welcomed life-giving interruption of your ‘normal’; that which helps you remember why any of us were born, and helps you relax into the fullness of your own purpose.
I have found my oasis in an event that unfolds this week.
I know this is oasis because we spent much of today laughing and creating and working alongside good friends that we love dearly and don’t get to see often. I know this is oasis because we walked into a cozy venue tonight, welcomed by friends with whom we share passion for ministry and art. I know this is oasis because we met a new table full of people, and immediately were connected in conversations about faith and ministry and family. We did not know everyone in the room, and we won’t by the end of the week. But we are drawn together through a common love for God, for the church, for art, and for music. A true blessing.
I know this is oasis because my soul was quieted and inspired as we listened to stories and songs by a woman who has been one of my favorite musician artists since I was ten years old. As the words of Ephesians 6 were sung over us in a holy moment at the close of the evening, I found myself saying over and over in a noiseless whisper, “thank you… thank you… thank you…”
Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ….. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.
There will be more noiseless whispers during holy moments throughout the week, and there will be an uncommon amount of thankfulness expressed by me. Because this oasis helps me stay humble and makes me thankful.
Whatever you oasis is, make sure you get there from time to time. You will not regret it. Purpose, thankfulness, and blessing. A drenching of the soul.
Oasis.
Favorites: Creamed Eggs
January 29, 2010
‘friday favorites’… movies, music, food, things that make our family’s life work better.
This was one of my favorite breakfasts when I was growing up. My mom can’t remember if she made it up, or if it came from my dad’s family. Regardless, it is a treat now often requested by my own kids. It is a simple recipe, a distant relative of eggs benedict, that consists of three basic things: toast, sliced boiled eggs, cheese sauce.
Creamed Eggs
boil eggs (5 or 6 for a family of four), and allow to cool slightly
while eggs are boiling, make the sauce
cheese sauce (triple this for a family of four)
2 Tbsp butter
2 Tbsp flour
1 cu milk – heated
salt & pepper
1/2 cu grated cheddar cheese
optional: ham chunks, browned sausage, or cooked baconMelt butter in saucepan. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly until paste cooks and bubbles, not allowing to brown. Add hot milk, continue to stir. Bring to a boil. Add salt & pepper to taste, add cheese. Lower heat and cook 2-3 min stirring. Add meat, if preferred. Remove from heat.
remove shells from eggs, and slice eggs into the sauce. stir gently.
serve sauce over toast. we prefer to cut toast into pieces before adding sauce.
adjust proportion of eggs and sauce as you like. feed to your family, and prepare to make it again.
Favorites: a dog and his fence
January 22, 2010
On Fridays I post about ‘favorites’… movies, music, food, or something that just makes our family’s life work better.
This is our dog, Sparky. He has been a part of our family for one year now.
We can’t even imagine life without him. Except that it was less fur-covered.
We adopted Sparky in the middle of winter, and brought him home to our fence-less property. He had a reputation for running away, so for about 3 months, we took him outside on a leash. Delightful in January and February.
Our situation (both geographical and financial) doesn’t lend itself well to fences of any kind, so we weren’t sure what to do to make it possible to allow Sparky outside without a leash. Then, we discovered this.
This is the PetSafe wireless fence system. Not underground wire… wireless. The grey transmitter sits in our basement and emits a ’safe’ zone with an adjustable radius. Our dog wears the red receiver collar. When he gets close to the boundary of the ’safe zone’, his collar beeps. If he crosses the boundary, he receives a slight shock (the intensity is also adjustable). It took just about a week for him to get used to the beeping and the boundary location after experiencing just 2 low intensity ‘corrections’. Now, he doesn’t ever challenge the boundary and we’ve set the collar to its lowest level, where it only beeps. We totally trust the system and the dog; he spends lots of time outside by himself (weather permitting). With the transmitter set to the largest radius, he has freedom to run in the yard all the way around our house, striking fear into the hearts of birds and rodents and cats as he goes.
The only weaknesses of the system are (a) a power failure takes out the transmitter, or (b) the battery runs out on the collar. Power failures don’t happen that often for us, and when they do, I’m fairly certain Sparky is oblivious to this effect. The collar pack gives warning lights when the battery is failing, and so far we’ve noticed it every time.
This system is sold at Petco and at various online sources.
I totally recommend.
Worship Reflections 01.17.10
January 19, 2010
Worship reflections are my musings about the worship services at First MB Church.
This was the third installment of our ‘Amazing Race’ series, which is a blaze through the entire Bible in seven weeks. This week, our pastor taught about the ‘wisdom & poetry’ books (Job, Psalm, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon), spending a little extra time on the story of Job. We also took the Lord’s Supper together, which is an every-other-month thing for our church.
worship service
welcome/news
‘Blessed Be Your Name’ (Redman)
‘Mighty to Save’ (Laura Story arr.)
Lord’s Supper (songs: ‘You are My King’ and ‘Your Name’)
offering: ‘The Word is Alive’ (Mark Hall & Steven Curtis Chapman)
message
Songs emphasizing the sovereignty of God? the story of Job? as potential vehicles for processing the many thoughts and emotions we’re all feeling during this week of the Haiti crisis? Yeah. You can’t plan stuff like that.
In thinking about this series, I searched for songs about the scripture as a whole, which is how I found ‘Word is Alive’, recorded by Casting Crowns. I had not heard this song before, but it is powerful. Vocalists Greg & Dani did a great job singing it, and the band did a great job bringing the power. Projected the words over this video loop, which fit beautifully. (Listen to entire song.)
I leave you with the lyrics (by Mark Hall & Steven Curtis Chapman)…
Looking out from His throne, the Father of light and of men,
Chose to make himself known to show us the way back to Him.
Speaking wisdom and truth into the hearts of peasants and kings,
He began to unveil the Word that would change the course of all things.
With eyes wide open all would see…(chorus)
The Word is alive
and it cuts like a sword through the darkness
with a message of life to the hopeless and afraid,
breathing life into all who believe.
The Word is alive
and the world and its glories will fade,
but its truth it will not pass away
it remains, yesterday and forever the same
The Word is alive.Simple strokes on a page, eternity’s secrets revealed
Carried on from age to age, it speaks truth to us even still.
And as the rain falls from the heaven, feeds the earth before it returns,
Lord, let your Word fall on us and bring forth the fruit You deserve
With eyes wide open let us see…
This post is a part of Sunday Setlists at theworshipcommunity.com. Check it out!
