'Tis the season

I've been feeling a bit of (pre-transformation) Ebeneezer Scrooge this Christmas season. Tight fisted. Grumpy. Hoping that others will let the day pass without me. And then there are moments that make my heart aglow...

watching my 16 month old son mesmerized by the Christmas lights.

receiving a sweet homemade goodie from one of my students.

hearing Andy Stanley's "Footnote" message.

listening to an incredible medley of music from the NPCC band.

And I remember. Despite the worries and the fears of the unknown future,

God is good.

He's in control.

He has a plan.

He loves me.

The season is about HIM and his active pursuit of our redemption.

Praise God!

Peace

Snapshots

Happy Reunion

Due to the nature of my dad's job, we moved around a bit growing up. I can remember six neighborhoods and many wonderful neighbors. My folks made numerous friends and thus I can remember tearful goodbyes and promises of reunions. Recently I've experienced the opposite side of moving.

Jess and I have been in this little neighborhood for about a year and a half. We've met and gotten attached to some dear folks. About a month ago two of our neighborhood pals moved out of the 'hood. (Trading their 'apartment' for larger accomodations.) Tonight they hosted a festive gathering and ornament exchange. A good time was had by all.

Cheers, Jose & Chason! Your home is lovely. We miss you 'round here but we are happy for you both! Not sure how long I'll continue to call the house on the corner yours. (Maybe a decade?) It's nice to know you're just down the road.

Confession

I am addicted to blogs. It's true. I check them more frequently than any other technological device in our service. I love following the web logs of friends and family. It's like receiving a Christmas card weekly. (Or monthly if it's Brent's blog. Or bi-monthly if it's brother Michael's blog.)

Yesterday I discovered the "next blog" button on my blog. Though I've clicked on it before, it was an accident and I immediately flipped back. Yesterday was different, though. I spent about 40 minutes cruising through other people's blogs, traveling from Iceland, to Korea, to rural Indiana and elsewhere with a simple click of a button. It was fascinating, voyeristic, I suppose. It was so encouraging to see images of folks sitting down at a Thanksgiving meal together or sporting creative Halloween costumes.

Ah, Jake's awake so my confession ends.

Intersect

Several members of our NP small group worked together to decorate a cafeteria at one of Atlanta Union Mission's campuses. According to Jess, they had a great time serving together. You can see their festive fall decor below:

Be Rich

How cool is it that the Intersect projects filled up so quickly that Jess had to sneak in the backdoor of Buckhead's site before that campus heard the message in order to sign up for a spot to serve? Praise God for the enthusiastic response to give in light of our bounty.

Atlanta Union Mission

First post

So I've long censored web log entries on Jake's page, preferring to stick with a photo log of Jake growing up and scribing long rambling messages in my head until they fade into oblivion. But now, here's an interruption to the program!

I've gotten such a kick out of following the blogs of friends and family. (And even friends of friends and friends of family...) While I may not be too great at maintaining communication via phone calls or emails, I am quite faithful at sitting down and checking blogs! More faithful than some are in updating their pages. : ) So keep 'em coming. I feel like I know a little of what's going on in your lives. And that makes me feel closer. Makes the world smaller. (Oh, and I reserve the right to set aside my English teacher cap on this site. It's my perogative as a writer.)

So, Mom, if you are the only one reading this. Hi. I miss you. Wish you lived closer. I love you.