For you

This is for Elisa. She needs to know how to post pictures. She says it isn't as easy as it seems. Tyler, you shouldn't have left us. This picture was taken at Morgan and Nathan's wedding. I lived with these three girls (drea, Heather and Elisa) in Cabin 1 and Cabin who cares. It was fun.

The Answer

I bought a new hat today for one dollar. That’s right. I thought it was going to cost me two dollars and at the cash register, it rang up as one. Hot dog.

I am supposed to be practicing my guitar right now. I am in a small group for worship leaders at church and I am supposed to lead tomorrow night. I am very easily frustrated when it comes to the guitar. Not playing the guitar, per se…. If I fiddle around with it enough, I can generally figure out how to play the thing. It’s when I try to play AND sing at the same time. I for the LIFE of me cannot do it. And it’s really getting old. I’ve been trying for years to play the piano and sing at the same time…all to no avail. I thought the guitar would be easier. I thought wrong. It pains me.

I had such a wonderful 4 day weekend in sunny Minnesota. It was one of those weekends where I was sad on Thursday evening because I knew I only had 3 days left. On Friday, I didn’t want Saturday to come because I didn’t want it to be more than half over. I even enjoyed every minute of the car rides….both there and back. That’s a rarity. I laughed a lot, danced a lot, and got better at my shimmy. I will say the two highlights the reception were Greg and I doing a stunning visual interpretation of “When I see you Smile” by Bad English and they way everyone went crazy when they played “Anything For Love” by Meatloaf. Also, Dylan and I had some fun stirring up trouble at a different reception, but that’s all I’ll say about that for now.

And because I made a deal, I will post this. Thanks to Becky (DAUM), fun can be had by all. I’ll post what she said about me in the comments. I think that’s how this is supposed to work. Peace. I’m out.

1) Reply with your name and I'll respond with something random about you.
2) I'll tell you what song/movie reminds me of you.
3) I'll pick a flavor/color of jello to wrestle with you in.
4) I'll say something that only makes sense to you and me.
5) I'll tell you my first memory of you.
6) I'll tell you what animal you remind me of.
7) I'll ask you something that I've always wondered about you.
8) If I do this for you, you must post this on your journal. You MUST. It is written.

Best I'll Ever Be

I attended a membership class at church the other day. Part of our time was spent in discussion groups where we were asked to say the best advice we had ever received. I said I had two - one from my mom and one from my dad. Coincidentally, both are biblical, which actually took me a long time to realize. My mom always reminds me to treat others the way you would want to be treated (#1) whereas my dad has countless times told me that he has never said anything out of anger that he didn't later regret (#2).

Out of all of the things my parents have individually and collectively taught me over the years, these are the #1 things that have stuck out to me from each of them. Whether or not that is what they would choose for me to remember, I am not sure. But much is to be said for both tidbits of wisdom. Too often I have spoken out of anger and later regretted it. Many, many times I have held my tongue in silence and later praised the Lord for His mercy in granting me a filter allowing comments to be kept to myself. I could give plenty of examples, but what I really want to talk about is the advice my mom has passed along....The Golden Rule.

The picture at the top of this post is of Jesus at the Last Supper. I was looking specifically for one of Him washing the disciples feet, but this was the best I could find. (Anyone looking to buy me a Christmas present??) The extreme significance of Him washing the disciples' feet is amazing to me and I feel I have only begun to tap into the truth behind the Heart of Jesus in this act of servanthood. At the Last Supper, Jesus knew his time had come. Not only that, he knew who would betray him and that the betrayal would end with much suffering. Yet he took on the very lowest form of a servant and washed his disciples' feet. One by one, he kneeled at their feet, cleansed them with water, then dried them with a towel. In John's account, it sets the scene by saying, "It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love." Amazing.

"He now showed them the full extent of his love."

The greatest act of love Jesus showed his disciples was to kneel before them and act as a servant to them. (It can be argued that Jesus's death on the cross was not out of love for us, but rather out of love for God....but that's probably another day's topic.) To place himself, essentially, at the bottom of the food chain and to treat them as royalty. The King of all creation washing stinky, dirty, nasty, grangy, mangly, sweaty, warty, calloused feet. In the stillness of that night, he knew that Judas would trade him for death, yet out of love and devotion to a friend who did absolutely nothing to deserve it, Jesus served him too.

I mean, really, this blows me away.

And I have much more commentary on it but I may save it for a later date in time because I want you to really think about the significance of this passage. I will let this be a time where I hold my tongue so that you may listen to the Lord's thoughts on the passage, not mine. ¡Toda la alabanza al dios para su amor que nunca falla!

Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. - Ephesians 5:1-2