Joy on a Monday

Things I'm finding joy in today:

• How Sam comes up to me and rubs his face on my legs
• Watching little ones come and go to their first day of school
• Beautiful last-day-of-August weather
• Planning our flight to go see U2 in Vancouver on October 28th!
• Solid bowel movements (Sam's, I mean)
• That Sam's 2 week bout of getting up at 6am has officially ceased, and we are back to the regular 7/730 wake up
• Yummy fair-trade Costa Rican coffee we bought from friends who were fundraising
• Maybe getting a plan together to serve Jesus right now, where we're at, with what we have (more on that later...)
• Having a husband and son who love me, and who I love
• Being intentional about reminding myself that even "blah" Mondays have some good things about them, too!

Kickin' it Old School

I've been convicted lately of spending time on Facebook.

Sometimes, when I feel these feelings, my first thoughts are, "well, I'm not as bad as SOME people". True. But that doesn't matter. I'm worse than I want to be. Although it's a great "social networking" (I hate that term, by the way - there's nothing truly "social" about it) tool, for me, it encourages complacency. It takes away from my goal of being intentional with relationships. It's too easy. It's too passive. For me, anyways. So I've been thinking, and praying some, and feeling like even though I've taken a huge step back from it already, I still might just break off the affair completely. I feel like that would force me to be intentional again. To kick it old school. Haha.

I realize emails and blogs aren't really old school, but I feel I can connect better with people that way. It's more one-on-one, (well, the emails, not the blog) instead of these mass status updates, comments, etc. that everyone sees. If someone wants to let me know what they're up to, then it's directly to me, and vice versa. And if I feel like I REALLY want to take it back to the good ol' days, I may even pick up the phone. Yikes.

Am I ready for this? I think so.

But I also don't think so. I think there are a lot of people that I will undoubtably lose touch with. But I guess those are the ones that I lived without BEFORE Facebook.

So I'm thinking I might just blog more, to let people know what's happening with us. If they want to know. Email more. Phone more. Maybe even get some really pretty stationary and --- are you ready for it?! --- SEND A LETTER!

I really feel like now that I've said this, that it makes it final. But that's probably good. A challenge never hurt anyone. But I'm still going to let it sink it for a few days. Not too many days, however, or I'll lose my gusto.

So, if you read this, here's my email:

krisandsarah2004@yahoo.ca

Send me a message so I have your email address, and other contact information. And we'll take our relationship back to the days of the horse and buggy. Or so it may feel.

And enter all the incredulous "you're not on Facebook?!" comments. I already get the "you don't have a cell phone?!" questions. But I'll be ready with a witty response. Maybe something along the lines of, "would Jesus be on Facebook?"... haha... just kidding. Kind of.

5 years of Kris and I

Kris and I just celebrated our 5th anniversary. I feel like this is a mini-milestone anniversary. And it feels weird to think that I have been a wife for 5 years. Weird, but good. And normal. The way life was just supposed to be.

It IS true that you love someone more as time goes on. Looking back to the day we got married, I almost feel like we hardly knew each other then. Of course we DID (or wouldn't THAT have been a gong show!), but in hindsight, we knew each other so much less than now.

I once heard someone say that it is a choice to be in love*. I find that to be so true. While I love Kris, and always will, it's not always going to be the same "cloud 9" feeling we had at the beginning. Because at the beginning, I didn't have to pick up his freakin' work socks off the carpet all the time (which, FYI, he has ceased doing). And you know, even Brad Pitt scratches himself, leaves his dishes out, and leaves clothes in the laundry hamper for 2 weeks without putting them away. (Okay, so Brad has a maid, but you know what I mean.) But what we had at the beginning was nowhere NEAR how good it is now. I think that's pretty cool. And it makes me so excited to think what it will be like in another 5 years. Or 50.

My favourite thing about Kris and my marriage, is that we really LIKE each other. We're really good friends. We laugh at each other, and find the same things funny. We help each other be better people. We're on the same page. He gets me. I get him. And I thank God for what an amazing thing we have together. I think a lot of people search for a long time for this. And I'm blessed enough to have found it. And while all this is a bit sappy, it's true, and I don't think I say it enough. I figured our 5 year anniversary was a good time to reflect. Here's to another 5, 10, 15... years.

*Okay, don't judge me, but it was Dr. Phil. Before he became so Maury-esque. I still think it was wise, despite the source. And he must be good - Oprah endorsed him, didn't she?!

We are the Body

We had a tragedy in Camrose this past Saturday. As I got ready for bed that night, talking with Kris about what had happened and feeling sad in my heart over it, I had a sudden conviction.

I had started thinking about going to church in the morning. I knew that we would talk about what had happened, and that maybe even someone in church might have been at Big Valley and would share about what it was like. And then we would pray. We would pray that God would be in this situation, and then we would pray that God would be with those people affected.

And here's what got me: we (the people of God, the hands and feet of Jesus) would sit in our church and pray that God would be with the people at BVJ. All while sitting in our warm, comfortable church. Safely removed from the situation. But asking that God be with them. I felt like it was as if someone was having a fatal allergic reaction, and the person with the Epipen (me!) was sitting a little ways off, thinking, "yikes! I really hope someone gets that guy an Epipen". I have the Epipen, and I didn't use it. Oh, I prayed, and I do believe God does something whether or not I act. But I imagined His disappointment, thinking, "but you are capable. It is YOU who I act through. When you ask me to be with someone, it is through YOU that I do that". It's sure a good thing he's so gracious and gives us lots of chances.

I don't like conviction. But what I don't like even more, is the feeling of being able, and not doing. I don't like that I had lots of ideas (going out to pray with people, handing out coffee, helping to clean up - something!), and didn't do any of it. So I will take conviction if it helps me to act next time.

I came across this poem, and pray that God burns it on my heart:

Christ Has No Body

Christ has no body but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world,

Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,

Yours are the hands, with which he blesses the world.

Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,

Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

Christ has no body now but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world.

Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)