Last weekend I was able to attend the Summer Celebration at Lipscomb.  I've been wanting to go for the past few years, but family vacations have always seemed to fall around this time of year and I haven't been able to do it.  But everything worked out this year and I was able to get away and go with Jeff, Lisa and Jenna.  So before I forget everything that I got out of that couple of days, I thought I'd record a few highlights:

Best times of singing, praise and worship:
Late Monday night with the praise team from the Hillsboro Church
Late Sunday night with the praise team from Otter Creek Church
A special treat singing "It Is Well With My Soul" led by Michael W. Smith  (more on that later)
And it's hard not to be encouraged by Keith Lancaster's spirited leading of even some of our oldest hymns  :)

Most encouraging class:
A Missional Experiment: The Journey of the Ethos Church --- We got a chance to hear how the church got started and various stories of faith that have encouraged them over the past 3 years. The most uplifting thing to me was that everything they shared centered around the very simple idea that 'Jesus changes everything.' They spoke very little about their 'church' but said a whole lot about what Jesus was doing among them... maybe that explains why their 'experiment' has been so overwhelmingly successful at drawing people to Jesus.

Funny moments along the way:
The 'scary toilet' in our shared bathroom
Thinking that we had found a quiet spot to each lunch outside only to be serenaded by a lawnmower and weed eaters
Going to Joe Beam's class "The Art of Love" with Jeff  (no, that wasn't awkward at all - ha)
Getting lost trying to find Mafioza's, then finally finding it, parking in the wrong parking lot, only to find that it was closed anyway... 
The look on Jeff's face as he tried to figure out something that he could eat at Fido's
Sitting in a class at the Shamblin Theater wrapped head to toe in my sleeping bag because I swear it was, like, 20 degrees in that room all weekend

Most unexpected thing that I really liked:
A class called "Come to the Quiet:  Creation" that I had not planned on going to, but ended up in because Patrick Mead was not able to make it to speak this year because of the fires in Colorado (which I was so disappointed about because I just LOVE him!)  ....anyways.... this class ended up being a time of guided, responsive reading of scripture and prayers with a few hymns sprinkled in.  It ended up being very refreshing, contemplative and moving.    Something I needed and didn't even know...  :)

A highlight for me:

Rhonda Lowery (the wife of Randy Lowery, president of Lipscomb) hosts 'conversations' with people every year at this event.  One of her guests this time was Michael W. Smith - one of my heros.  :)    I just love his music and what he has meant as a pioneer to Christian contemporary music.   I loved getting to hear his story, a little about his career, and a lot about what his passion (besides music) is now - the Rocketown ministry in downtown Nashville.  I was not aware until then that he had started that and it was neat to hear about what that ministry is doing for kids in that area.   Just one more example of creative ways to reach out with the heart and love of Jesus through community to those who may not find their way in to 'church' in any other way.   (example... they have 'Skater Church' on Tuesday nights where all the kids that come there to use the indoor skate park can get in for free that night and they have a devotional for them - pretty cool.)

At the very end of the interview with Michael W. Smith, Rhonda Lowery asked him to play a hym for us...  he smiled and said, "Oh, I know just what to play...  but I want you all to sing for me with your 3 part harmony."  (It's 4 part, but who's counting - ha)  So he sat down at the piano and began to play "It Is Well With My Soul" and we all started to sing.  Then everyone in the auditorium began to stand up and we sang along as he played - it was beautiful.  As he started into the 2nd verse, he stopped playing and just stood up and walked around in front of the piano to stand and listen to us sing the rest of the song... and it was just the neatest moment - to see how much he was enjoying our singing and how awesome it sounded.   It's hard to describe, but it was just an inspiring moment.

I know there was a lot more, but that is what is coming to mind now.   It was great getting away for a couple of days and just having time to be immersed in lessons and conversation about Jesus and enjoying times of singing and worship of all kinds.  It was also a lot of fun to be a part of how the Burgesses do these kinds of things as a family.  It was fun to go off to different classes and then all get together at meals and the end of the day to share what we learned...  and I loved that Jenna was the one that insisted at the end of the day (even when everybody was tired) that we get together and share from the day.  That's awesome. :)  

(Speaking of Jenna - just wanted to give her credit for the photos - I stole them from her!!) 

Beach Pictures...

I can't believe it took this long for me to get some pitures up from our beach trip, but here are a few of my favorites:

From our one "dress up" dinner out at The Back Porch:

From our very funny parasailing adventure:

From the balcony of my aunt and uncle's condo:

On the boardwalk to the beach:



Hopefully the pictures say it all because it took so long to edit all of them that I don't feel like writing much!  :)   But this was such a good trip and it actually seemed like a l-o-n-g vacation, which never seems to happen when you're on vacation.   So, I'm very thankful for generous relatives and for God's creation in beautiful places like Destin, Florida!! :)

Awwwww.......

Since I would be dismembered, killed or otherwise harmed if I dared post this picture on FaceBook, I've chosen to put it here where it will likely not get quite so much attention.  :)   Anna came home today from Impact at Lipscomb where she had a fabulous (and exhausting) week growing closer to friends and to God.  The theme was 'Stranger than Fiction' and I'm very jealous that the guest speaker was Chris Siedman - he's one of my favorites.  Makes me wish all the more that I could have been there... but Anna was happy to FINALLY have something to go to that I didn't chaperone (ha) and I'm not sure I could have survived an entire week with the senior high.  :)

Anyways, just wanted to share the cute picture.  They weren't allowed to have their phones with them this week and it appears that Anna really missed hers.  ;-)

Outside my window...

Outside my window…sand, surf…high winds and pouring down rain.  (Any of you who know anything about a Carter Family vacation will not be surprised by this.)

In the kitchen…still a good bit of food that needs to be eaten before we leave tomorrow.

I am thinking…about the marvelous grace of God and His ability to do what we see as impossible.

I am grateful…for friends who look past my faults to see my heart and my beautiful family that is so much fun to be with!

I am praying…to hear God’s voice and be fully aware of God’s Spirit in me.  (maybe I should say I am trying to listen more than pray right now – you all know how hard it is to get me to shut up - ha)

I am remembering…thanks to Facebook, two of Mackenzie’s best friends from long ago in Boston (Joanna on the left and Jenny on the right), just graduating from High School – it’s taking me back to good memories of old friends that I really wish I could just sit down with and have a good long time to catch up with over lunch…

 

I am wondering…how God is going to work out the confusion I feel over the church situation I am in right now.

I am studying…well, mostly reading, lots of different blogs that are challenging me to think carefully and ask good questions about a lot of things I’ve always taken for granted.  It’s not easy, but it’s definitely worthwhile.

I am pondering these words… “God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.”  Eph. 3:20, from The Message

I am resolving…to get back into some sort of workout routine starting this week when I get home.  Running?  Yoga?  Not sure what is going to work just yet, but something.  Spending a few days at the beach in a bathing suit is good motivation.  ;-)

I am thankful…for my Aunt and Uncle who bought this condo we’re staying in many, many years ago and have generously and graciously let us use it over the years – going all the way back to when I was in college!  My uncle passed away earlier this year and being here makes me really miss him…  and there is a sadness in knowing my aunt will probably not be able to come back here again.  But there are also good memories of visiting them here.

I am wearing…my favorite pajama pants and a tye-dyed t-shirt that I came back in and put on after getting totally drenched in my walk on the beach this morning.  :)

Around the house (condo)…4 sleeping teenage girls who I love to death.

I am creating…nothing much at the moment, but I hope soon to be creating ‘space’ as I get some organizing projects going around my house for the rest of the summer.

I am reading…just finished “Vanishing Acts” by Jodi Piccoult.  

I am going…home tomorrow.  Not willingly.  Ha.

I am looking forward to…strangely, Mackenzie’s trip to Australia – not that I want her to leave, but I’m so excited for her and I know it’s going to be an amazing, life-changing trip for her.  Can’t wait to see what God is going to do through her!

I am discovering…so many new ways of looking at things.

A picture for thought…this was just a funny moment from our dinner out at The Back Porch a couple of nights ago.  We were seated by an open window where Mackenzie and Anna were sitting across from each other by the window.  At some point, Mackenzie reached across the table to get something near Anna, not sure what, but she managed to knock the pepper off the end of the table and out the window, where it fell to it’s death into the sand 2 stories below!  ;-)   We all laughed until we cried… 

I hope to get more pictures up soon from the beach - it really has been a wonderful and relaxing trip!

An Angel on my Path

Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.
                                                   - Hebrews 13:2

Actually, I'm not sure if she was an angel or if really, Jesus just showed up to spend some time with me today. For real.

I had been planning this day for a little while.  A morning to take our "Once Upon a Time" class (made up of our high school girls at church) up to Green Mountain for a hike around the lake and a time to worship the Lord while we ate, sang, laughed and prayed together.

For months now, we've been looking at the stories of women in the bible who had encounters with Jesus and how they were transformed.  And each week we've labeled a rock with what we learned from that woman to build an alter of remembrance. So last night, rather late, I was putting the finishing touches on all the preparations for the morning -- making sure all of our 'alter rocks' were properly numbered and named and ready to be set on the path for the girls to find as we hiked around the lake -- getting all the food prepared and pretty dishes for it all to go in -- and fitting it all into bins and coolers for transport -- writing out instructions for Mackenzie and Jessica since they were to be my 'set-up' crew for the feast at the chapel.  11:00pm rolled around and I was done with all of that and ready for bed. 

What hadn't I done?  Well, I really hadn't spent a lot of time thinking about what I was going to say to the girls in the morning and I was bothered by that -- isn't that really more important than all these preparations?  I mean, that needed to get done, but was I neglecting the lesson in all of it?

But my body and my mind were too tired for any more at that point.  I reasoned that I would have the whole time that I was walking around the lake by myself in the morning, putting all the rocks out to find, and I would just think it through then.  Yeah, that's it, that'll work..hmmmm.....

I made my way up to the trail on Green Mountain early Sunday morning, praying on my drive up there that God would be very present in the day and that the words I wanted to say would come together.  I pulled into the parking lot and noticed a woman getting out of her car about the same time - from the way she looked and was dressed, it seemed obvious that she was there for a morning workout.   She was moving a bit faster than I was so she headed on down the trail.  Meanwhile, I was pulling out two pretty heavy sacks of rocks and a big bunch of flowers.  My plan was to walk the trail and leave a rock and a flower at strategic points for the girls to find. 

***The picture you need to get in your mind here is of me, awkwardly lugging these bags of rocks while trying to hold a large bunch of flowers.  I was very aware of the fact that my back and shoulders were going to hurt after this little adventure!  But, I reasoned it was worth it and forged on.*** 

Then it happened... 

I had started down the path and had put down one rock with it's flower...  I came around a bend and saw the woman from the parking lot just up a ways standing and looking out over the lake.  I was feeling a little self-conscious with all the stuff I was carrying, but I had to get on with my task. 

She turned to look at me as I got closer, then smiled and asked what I was doing with my bags....
Yes, I guess I really do look kinda weird.  ha.  So I stammered around a bit about our Sunday School class and what we've been learning and what I was out there doing. 

And then the unexpected...

She said, "Can I help you out?  I'd be happy to carry your bags."    Of course, my immediate reaction (don't we all do this?) was, "Oh, no... I couldn't ask you to do that...  you're so nice, no, but thank you!"   Well, she was persistent.

Her:  "Really, I'd like to help."

Me:  "Well, ok, if you're sure - here's a bag."

Her:  "Oh, let me have both of them to balance myself out."

Me:  "But I don't want you to have to carry them all - that's too much!  And I don't want to keep you from what you were going to do."

Her:  "Oh, this works great... I was going to do some meditation and then a warm-up walk, but this will work just perfect.  And give me both bags, I need the exercise."

Me:  "Well, ok, if you're sure."

Her:  "I'm sure."


Wow...  isn't it just like that with Jesus?  He takes away our heavy load of burdens (rocks!) and leaves us to walk along beside Him holding beautiful flowers... 

So we walked on and the next thing she said was...  "I just LOVE this place... it's my favorite place on earth!"

***OK....  If you know me or have read any of my blog, you know that those very words could have come out of my mouth.  And of course, I told her that I felt the very same way.  :)    It truly is the place where I go when I most need to feel the nearness of God.***

We walked on together from there.  I found out her name is Susan.  I shared more about our class and the girls and the women we have been studying.  As we would place another rock and another flower, (laying down burdens and blessings?)  she would ask me what this woman's story was about...  I got to share a lot of stories and she listened and asked questions.  She shared some of her thoughts with me on the heartaches that women faced in Jesus' day and that they still face today.  I get the feeling she understood heartache of her own.

It was such a joy, though, to see her get more and more excited with each 'rock' and story.  And for me, to have this opportunity to share these stories with her....well....it couldn't have been a more perfect answer to my earlier prayer that I would feel the presence of Jesus and be able to gather my thoughts for the morning!  I have to admit, for a moment, when I first saw her on the path and she started talking to me, I saw her as a possible distraction to the time that *I* needed to focus my thoughts.   Glad I didn't get stuck in THAT thought! 

Then another wild moment:

She asked if it was all right to ask where I went to church.  I told her Central Church of Christ and she said, "Oh, I know exactly where that is! --- Do you know Clyde Jones?"   (OK, really, is there ANYONE that Clyde doesn't know or whose life he hasn't touched?  wow...)  I said, oh yes, I do know Clyde and mentioned that along with knowing him from church, he had been a professor for Jack at UAH.  That's where SHE said she had met him! :)   Small world.....

Having made that connection, we continued on and talked more about Jesus and the Samaritan woman and Jesus and the adulterous woman.... she loved the stories.  We came around another bend and a man was walking towards us with his dog.  She knew him - they work together.  I believe his name was Tom.  She stopped and said hi,  pet the dog...  and then introduced me.  She said, "Tom, I'd like to introduce you to my new friend, Kay."  I think I might have looked at her like...  what?"  But she smiled at me and I smiled back and shook Tom's hand like this was all perfectly normal.  It FELT rather surreal.  I don't think I can adequately convey what hearing that felt like...  here is a woman that I just met maybe 20 minutes ago, we barely know each other, but in the most sincere and honest way, she called me her friend.

And isn't that just like Jesus, who wants to know us and call us His friend?  So cool...

We walked on... When we reached the chapel, I told her that my daughter Mackenzie and her friend Jessica were going to set up a meal and communion to be there for us when we arrived.  I also told here that this is where we would use our rocks to build an alter of remembrance. 

***It's funny.  The one thing that I ended up not getting to do because of running into Susan, was that I didn't have time to find one last rock from our last week of class.  I had 12 rocks and that would have been number 13.  I was joking a few days earlier with Lisa that perhaps we shouldn't have a 13th rock - seems kind-of a shame to mess up the 'biblical number' of 12 and maybe just a little bit superstitioulsy unlucky.  ha.  But still, I had intended to find a rock for that last woman, the mother of James and John.  Well, that didn't happen...***

But back to my walk with Susan.  After passing the chapel, we made it back to the beginning of the trail...  time to go our separate ways.  She said that she had enjoyed hearing the stories of women in the bible and their encounters with Jesus and the way that it changed them.  The she asked me if I knew of any stories in the bible where a woman had influenced another woman like that...  I told her my favorite story and the one that first came to mind was about Ruth.  And I reminded her that Ruth was a part of Jesus' geneology and was on one of our 'rocks.'  :)   I told her it was an amazing story of love, loyalty, and faith.   She said that she would have to go and read it.  :)

So I was about to head off to my car and she was off for her run, now that she was 'warmed up' - ha - and she said, "Can I give you a hug?"  And you know, I'm pretty affectionate by nature, but I don't really make a habit of hugging strangers.  But she wasn't a stranger any more. She had become my friend.  So we exchanged a hug and off we went. 

And I got in my car with a heart full of thankfulness and overflowing with praise for the God who knows every one of my needs and just how to meet them!

Later, after we had brought the girls up to the mountain, taken our hike, and arrived at the chapel, Mackenzie pulled me aside for a moment.  I had left a bunch of flowers sitting on the stone wall that I had left over from the walk.  She pointed to a rock sitting next to them.  Then she told me that Susan had come by as they were setting up and had offered to help them carry stuff from the car - just as she had offered to help me.  They were almost done, so they thanked her and didn't really need her help at that point...  but a little while later, she came back as they were setting the table.  She said, "Do you two know Kay?"  Mackenzie said, "Yes, I'm her daughter!"  And the Susan gave her the rock and told her that I would understand why she was leaving it there.  Susan said to tell me, "This rock is for all the unnamed women in Jesus' day and all the way up to today who need to be remembered." 

To say that I was floored is a gross understatement.  And sitting here reliving it for a moment, I'm just undone by that statement and by her immense understanding of what I so hope all these girls that we've been teaching these last months will get. 

ALL of us need to be touched and transformed by Jesus. 
ALL of our stories are so important!  
ALL of us need a moment to realize that we are loved and valued and irreplaceable in the sight of God.

That's what this morning did for me.  That's what Susan did for me today.  The angel on my path.  Or maybe it really was Jesus...   whatever the case, I hope we meet again some day.

Oh... and did I tell you? The rock Susan gave us - that became the 13th rock for our alter that I hadn't had a chance to get that morning? As I placed it on top of the alter, Lisa said, "MERCY" -- yeah, that was supposed to be the lesson from that rock. How fitting. :)

 #1 - Spiritual Birthday -- Women in the Geneology of Jesus...  Ruth, Tamar, Rahab, Bathsheba and Mary

 #2 Influential Woman -- Elizabeth

 #3 An Object I Value - Mary, mother of Jesus

 #4 A Gift from Loss - the widow's son

 #5  Healing - Peter's mother-in-law

 #6  Broken - the sinful woman

 #7 A Secret - the Samaritan woman

 #8  Brave - the bleeding woman

 #9  Serving with a smile - Mary and Martha

 #10  Spiritual Birthday - Easter, women at the tomb

 #11  Hope - the crippled woman

 #12  A Spiritual Gift - the widow's mite

 Our alter of remembrance

Love these girls!!! :)

Mother's Day

I'm a couple of days behind on this and trying to catch up.  I had a really nice Mother's Day spent mostly with this crew on the couches here.  :)  Mackenzie's missing because she was still trying to make her way home from the beach, but she did make it later in the day and declared that her being home was my mother's day present.  ;-)   (Actually, that was a really nice present!)

I loved having Jessica and Becca here for the weekend!    They were so sweet on Sunday morning coming downstairs with the paintings below that they made.  That made me feel very special.   

And Anna was sneaky and got together with a couple of friends over the weekend and made this mosaic pot for me.  I think it turned out quite amazing and I was very surprised! :)

And to go along with all my creative girls, my sweet husband got tickets for us to go to the American Idol concert in Nashville!  I was so surprised and I can't wait.  I've always wanted to go to one of the concerts and this year all the contestants have been so good...  yay! :)

She's home! :)

 

So this is part of the aftermath of the move home for Mackenzie on Friday. Her door to her bedroom just to the right of this picture is closed for good reason!  :)  It's great to have her back for a while....  well, at least it will be great when she gets back from her week at the beach with her friends.  She sort-of blew in and blew back out this weekend, which is what I guess college kids do.  ha.   But I'm sure you can tell I'm not jealous at all.  Yeah, ...right!  ;-) 

Anyways, I haven't been here to write in ages, it seems.  A month, it looks like.  Feels like forever.  It's not for lack of things to write about, just for what seems like lack of time.  I was telling a friend the other day that I think I've adjusted physcially to having a part-time job, but I'm not sure I've adjusted mentally.  The few hours that it is taking out of my week seem to be the hours that I used to use to think about and process things.  I find that I'm now having to be more creative and intentional about making time for things like blogging.... and thinking. ;-) 

I don't think there is any way that I can actually capture all the *stuff* that I've been trying to process in the last few months.  There is a lot going on in my heart and mind that is causing me to ask questions about where I am in my life, about my faith, about things I've believed all my life, about God, and grace, and love, and rules, and roles and the Holy Spirit and Jesus... and at the moment I have FAR more questions than I do answers.  That is generally unsettling to me, but I'm learning that even THAT is part of the journey I'm on right now - making peace with the fact that I don't have all the answers -- and never have, even though I surely would have argued with you that I did have them all at one time in life.  oh my...  

So I thought maybe I'd just put some links here to things I've been reading/listening to because they've challenged my heart and have opened my eyes and my heart in many, I believe, good ways:

http://inamirrordimly.com/    by Ed Cyzewski  -- especially his Friday "Women in Ministry" series posts.  These have been SO encouraging to me.

http://sarahbessey.com/  by Sarah Bessey -- I just love the way she writes and the quirky ways she shares her connection to God and how He is moving in her life - very inspiring! 

http://kathyescobar.com/  by Kathy Escobar -- my new most favorite blogger.  Could I dare say that at this moment, if I could dream about something I would love to do with my life, it would be what she is doing. 

http://tentpegs.patrickmead.net/  by Patrick Mead -- this is the one making me think and making me crazy... but in a good way.  :)  Love it...

http://www.ethoslove.com/  This is where Mackenzie is going to church these days in Nashville.  What a beautiful community of people testifying to God's love and grace!  I try to listen each week to their sermon podcasts - I've gotten a lot of new insights and fresh perspectives on the continually unfolding story of God and His love for all of us.  I think it's awesome. :)

In a sermon from a while back that I listened to today, "Who Do You Long For?" I was really confronted with a question that I've been quietly asking myself for a long time - Who really IS most important in my life?  Is it really God that I long for with all of my heart?  I'm not sure I know how to answer that question.  I want to say YES.  But I know what it feels like to long for something and I don't know that I can apply that word to how I feel about God.  And I hate how that sounds, but I'm trying to be honest.  I know I want to feel that longing for God and Him alone...  I'm just trying to figure out how to.  That seems to be the journey for me right now.  I said to a friend the other day who's known me for a very long time that I feel like I've spent most of my life trying to extract from the people in my life what I really need to be letting God give me.  In her words, she said, "Wow, I think you just said a mouthfull right there."  Yeah, I guess so...

Anyways, I'm thinking out loud and rambling on...  I wanted to share more thoughts from that sermon, but I will have to save that for another day.  I may even work it into a lesson for the teen girls this Sunday because it's just so good...  but more on that another time.  :)