Sarah. (A Woman Worth Knowing)

It has been quite some time since I blogged. But there's always a good reason to start again!

I have this really great friend. When I say really great, I mean like, REALLY great. She kind of does awesome things for the Name of the LORD in this world. She loves and honors her husband more than any wife I know. She is about to be the mother of a beautiful, long-awaited child. She builds up youth to also serve in this world. She is one of my best friends, and she has impacted my life more than words can describe.

Her name is Sarah Beard, and (if you don't already), I would like for you to take a moment to get to know her.

Sarah is a frequent blogger. You don't have to read all of these, but they're all pretty great...so if you have time, you should.

These posts will give you a sense of Sarah's rich love of the Lord:

• Faithful. An honest conversation. - The occasional struggle to trust the faithfulness of God.
• Learning is Fun this Week! - A post about obedience.
• Good. - God, the Ultimate Good.

These posts relate to Sarah's marriage to Andrew - posts that have inspired me and I hope will inspire you about what you desire in marriage as well:

• Intention - READ THIS. You will seriously want this kind of relationship. 
• Marriage Purity - Self explanatory, a message about purity even within marriage.

And these, well, these are shorter snapshots of Andrew & Sarah and how seriously HILARIOUS they are. If you don't already, you'll understand why I love them so much after reading these:

• What Happens When I Don't Reply
• Airplane Humor
• Chuck

Basically, Sarah is one of the greatest people I know. Here's where you come in. Sarah works for this awesome organization, His Voice Global. Check it out more here. HVG is in the midst of some awesome Kingdom projects. These include building orphanages in Sudan (& partnering with people there to sustain them), partnering with a boys home in India, and feeding thousands of orphans in North Korea (a RARE and amazing opportunity). Sarah is the Director of Partnerships for HVG, which means she is constantly finding new people/churches/organizations to partner with HVG in various ways. She also plans missions conferences and loads of other things. 

As another part of her job, Sarah has to raise her own salary. This year, with Baby Beard due in June, Sarah is hoping to raise $30,000. This little nugget growing inside of her has been an answer to years of prayer, and I want to do everything I can to make sure he/she is well taken care of! :)

Sarah is also one of the most humble people I know. You can believe that no matter how big or little your donation, she will be humbled, maybe even to tears -- or maybe it's just the pregnancy hormones. :) She is a gracious woman who is deserving of any dollar you could give her way.

If you would like to give a one-time or monthly donation to Sarah (AND YOU SHOULD!), please follow her directions in this post:
The Ask.

If you really still feel like you don't know Sarah enough, here is a video testimony she also used to announce to the youth group that her and Andrew were expecting a child. Enjoy! And PLEASE, be a part of Christ's hands & feet in the world and help her reach her goal! ANYTHING HELPS!

Volunteer Testimony - Sarah Beard from HPUMC & Munger Place on Vimeo.

Hiking with the Lord - Busiek Revelations

Well hello world!

So I know it has been a while...I also know that I never finished documenting my summer road trip travels. Maybe I'll get around to that eventually so that I do indeed have it documented.

But for now...I return to the blogosphere for a different reason. I've been doing some reading lately...and also a bit of hiking out at Busiek State Forest in the Ozarks. Busiek used to be the place where I had a lot of fun college camping memories (which I still do...freeze the gnats and tats November camping! ha) but this time around living in Springfield...Busiek has become my place to hike with the Lord.

Which is exactly what I did this last Monday. 

At one point, I felt like the Lord just wanted me to sit down for a second...and take some time to just listen. So I did. My thoughts had kind of been overwhelmed the few days prior...and this is what I felt like He revealed to me.

I looked to my left, then to my right, and this is what I saw. (These pictures may look very similar to you, but to me there were definite differences.)

First, to my left:

From my view, the path kind of trailed off vaguely, consumed by the trees and leaves. It was like the past, no matter what's back there or where you've come from - it's constantly being consumed by the Lord's beauty. We just have to keep walking on and trust that His beauty is consuming it behind us.

To my right...

 

The path is a little more defined. But then it turns the corner and disappears. I had been way over-thinking my future, caught up in the details of what might possibly be and how to take care to get there. Sitting on the rock, I had the realization that we all know but too often forget - Yes, the Lord has plans for us, plans to give us hope and a future (Jer 29) - but that does not mean He lets us see all of those plans whenever we want. No, we are to live in today and take care of the right now. Why worry about tomorrow, for today has enough trouble of it's own? I believe He lets us see just enough....but when we try to make too many future plans (like me going back to school to teach, or moving to Dallas)...we are just fooled. Our lives are but a mist...so let's not get caught up in our 5 year plans.

And then...this caught my eye, straight ahead of me.....a fallen, dead tree.

 

I couldn't figure out why it so grabbed my attention for a bit...and I was fixated on it just for that reason. And then all of a sudden I had this thought - sometimes we are so concentrated on death that we miss the beauty that is ALL around us. And I don't mean just literal death. I mean any kind of darkness that feels like death in our hearts - could be pain that hasn't been dealt with, could be sin, could be the tendency to dwell on the negative. But if we could just take our eyes off of that thing for just a second...we would see LIFE......

 

So this week, that's what I would encourage you to do. Take your eyes off of the things that are bringing death to your heart...take a look at the life, light, and beauty around you. The Lord is here. The Lord is EVERYWHERE. And He is magnificent. He is consuming your past. And taking care of your future. So trust in Him. And follow the path in front of you. Wherever He's leading you...He'll be with you. And that's all you need to know.

God bless. :)

Vulnerability.

Ok so I know I need to update...I have more coast pictures and redwoods and sunsets and Arches National Park in Utah! But I want to pause for a moment. To say this.

About 4 years ago or so...my first couple of years of college...I was in this super vulnerable place. For the first time ever, I was just very honest with myself and conversations were going on with lots of different friends around me and I just started to realize the power of vulnerability.

I think it has power...for a few reasons. 

1. For our past issues... maybe it's suffering. Maybe something crappy happened to us that just weighs on us or that we don't understand. Or perhaps we did something. Something that is so far removed from who we are now but nonetheless, we know we did it once. And maybe the emotions of that weigh on us. I think in these situations, we have to know a couple of things:

• 2 Corinthians 1:4-5 tells us that He will comfort us in our troubles, SO THAT we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. I think that in order to provide this comfort with those who might be walking through the same things...we ourselves have to be willing to share what happens.
• John 5, where Jesus heals the crippled man by the pool...He tells the guy to "Get up! Pick up your mat and walk." One time I heard someone preach on this passage and a huge part of it was about the phrase "Pick up your mat and walk".... the mat. The sick, nasty mat that the guy has been laying on, defecating on for THIRTY-NINE years... "Pick it up and walk." Carry that thing with you. SHOW God's glory in where He has brought you from. Get up. Don't get stuck in it, don't walk in that sin, don't drown in that suffering anymore. Get up. But take the mat...and show God's glory in how He has healed you. You have to be vulnerable to be willing to carry around your mat.
• I don't have a verse for this one...but we've all been through healing processes. And to kind of go along with my first point...some people are further along in the healing journey. We can't gain their wisdom unless we, as the un-wise, learn to open up.

2. For current issues, namely, current sin:

• James 5:16 tells us to "Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." I mean there it is. Confess your sins. Name them. Be honest and vulnerable. Pray for each other. Be accountable. Find healing. 

I learned a lot in that vulnerable season of my life. But then life got hard and I went through this weird depression which was so unlike me, and afterwards I started running away from a lot of things I used to know. I closed up. It was easier to just help others and not deal with myself.

This trip, God has no longer let me do that. I had to quit running. And it sucked for second. I don't like some of my mats. I would rather put them down. And there are some other things I would kinda like to keep hiding. But then I realized... especially with past mats. It's important to not shut them up. Because we start to THINK they are things we have to be ashamed of... when really, we are just stinkin' robbing our GREAT God of His glory that He deserves. I wanna give that glory.

Sorry this is long...I want to end with this. I wrote this poem in a class my sophomore year of college. I don't pretend to be a great writer by any means, ha, but it got good reviews for the class so I feel okay putting it out there. haha. It's called "Little Soapbox"...because seriously, I preached vulnerability like crazy back then. 

Little Soapbox

We shared life stories the other day

But I could see in your eyes that you were offering only so much

Replacing details with

And yeah, I just don’t know

But I know that the pain lies in what you avoid putting into words

It just wasn’t a good time you say

But the darkness of your past covers your eyes

And why?

I’ll tell you why.

Because no one talks.

Because we’re taught the past is supposed to be just that.

The past.

Secret.

Almost as if it doesn’t even exist.

But we’re dying to talk

Because we’re dying for someone to listen

To know the real us

To forgive our mistakes

And to understand our suffering

And the thing is

When we do step out and talk

We fling open the floodgates of realness

Allowing those who identify with us to rush in

Because really, we all have a lot more in common than we thought.

So talk.

Because true healing lies in your words.

Oregon

My oh my, has it been a couple of days.

A little bit too deep of thoughts to pour out quite yet...other than I am definitely being pruned to hopefully be more productive for my Savior and His Kingdom. That.....and I have some really special people in my life. One Courtney Kirby...who speaks grace with authority into my life whenever I need it. And Sarah Beard...a friend I never saw coming but don't plan to ever let go! 

So here is my time in Oregon in photos:

Along I-84, I stopped at a rest stop and had a sweet conversation with a broken but Jesus-believing man named Henry. I also snapped a couple photos of the scenery I got to take in along the entire Oregon/Washington border.

 

When I got to the Portland area, the first thing I did was stop at Multnomah Falls. It was sunset and the light was hitting a little weird. But here it is!

 

I wanted to hike to the top of the falls. I was not quite in shape, but I made it!

 

After that, I went to stay in a community house where 10 people live with Sarah Whiting. And she took me to Voodoo Donuts where I got a bacon maple bar!

 

King of skipping ahead...after Portland I went to the Oregon Coast. I basically drove down the whole coast so here are a few photos.

 

Goonies beach!

 

Beautiful beach with rocks instead of sand. 

 

Which was right by this Yaquina Head lighthouse.

 

Washed.

This is really blurry. But Cali is where I am now!

The weird thing about this trip is that I am so unplanned. I realized I didn't last long in city life...so I don't think I'm going to San Fran. I really don't have a solid plan for tomorrow. I will go explore Redwood National Park and then see what happens!

Thanks for keeping up!

Across the Land of Potatoes

The trip goes on! I've made it across Idaho and tomorrow I will head to Portland. I got a hook up there and I am going to be staying at a community house where 10 people live. I'm super excited. And also pumped to see Multnomah Falls on my way into town.

I had some adventures yesterday at Craters of the Moon and today...Bailey and I googled things to do in Boise. At the top of all the travel people lists...was Old Idaho Penitentiary. So naturally, we went! ha. Kind of creepy. But also interesting. And took a couple funny pictures.

Here are collections of little thoughts I've had...

• There's some cute foreign guy and his dad at Craters of the Moon. Maybe I should take a little extra time in the caves and let them catch up...
• Battle would. Not my idea of taking extra time. I really have got to start taking better care of my head. At least I was caving with some Canadians if I passed out or something. The wound came after I had already made a 127 Hours reference.
• There was blood. Not much thought. I just slapped a bandana on it so as not to gross anyone else out with the blood in my hair.
• There are so many different license plates at National Parks. I even saw a Pennsylvania one in Idaho! I guess we're all the same breed. Road trippers = National Park visitors = Wilderness lovers

Sermon thoughts:

• About prayer (and could apply to other things): You shouldn't say, I'll do this because if I do it, He'll be for me. He's ALREADY for you. Rather, the attitude should be, because He's for me, I put forth this effort.
  

I decided to start adding quotes I've overheard:

• "Ohhh, you got that Super Mario song stuck in my head again. I should hit you with my purse!"
• "Are we seriously clapping for a geyser?" (My sentiments exactly. I laughed. As did the Asians sitting between me and the man who made this comment at Old Faithful.)
• A dad, as his family walked away from "Inspiration Point" at Yellowstone after only being there about a minute...."I guess we're not feeling very inspired."

Pictures from Idaho!

 

I got little kid excited to go up this thing @ Craters of the Moon. It was fun.

 

Tree on top of the black rock hill.

 

In Boy Scout cave! Pre- head bump.

 

Bailey and I at Old Idaho Penitentiary 

Just in case any of you readers need to make a phone call....

Here are some links to the FB albums of the rest of my photos.

Tetons/Yellowstone

Idaho

God bless! 

Grand Tetons & Yellowstone

(Ok so my blog might be slowly changing...how do I get my own picture in the background?!)

Anyway! Here is what this post is going to contain:

1. All the brief thoughts I have jotted down in my iphone notepad while I did not have 3G...or perhaps any service at all in Wyoming/Yellowstone.

2. Pictures!

Longer trip thoughts will come later. So here it goes:

• I feel like I'm going to have to pull over and highway wilder-pee. Fo real. It's that bad.
• I have a bug bite the size of China on my forehead, and I "showered" this morning using a Coleman handiwipe. How hardcore are you? ha
• If you want to see our economic recovery plan in action...just drive west. You can't miss it when you have to waste chunks of time sitting in one way road construction traffic.
• I feel like I'm going to smell like a rotten egg by the end of the day. Yellowstone...kinda smells.
• Seen one geyser...seen em all. Idk. Much more impressed by the canyon and falls than the weird geothermal stuff.
• There is some New Yorker next to me making a video about Yellowstone Canyon. I had to turn around to smile to myself about his accent and enthusiasm.
• There is a young couple walking around, and the guy has no shirt on. I've seen them multiple times today. What's the name of that MTV show where girls date dbags?
• Just sayin, if you feel like taking a legit cross country road trip, you really need to know how to read a map. I haven't had service 80% of my trip thus far. 
• The way people stop for wildlife around here...I mean am I heartless if I just totally do not care? Animals schmanimals.
• Okay...so I have taken a picture of a bald eagle (kind of sweet) and some buffalo just because everyone else was. ha.
• Apparently a bear killed someone in Yellowstone for the first time since the 80's the day before I was there. So they closed the road where the guy and his wife were hiking. Like bears never travel elsewhere.
• I love nature but I also love civilization. I was dying for a cheap bed. So I drove on to Idaho Falls for a cheap hotel room. And I'm glad I did!

A couple of notes from sermons I listened to:

• If something stops growing it stops living.
• Comfortable faith is no faith at all.
• Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you will get neither.

And a couple of bigger, deeper thoughts from myself:

• Science-type or some philosophical people say they don't believe in God because you can't actually see him. Like it's ridiculous, because we believe in something we can't see. Some of them think we are just nuts. But when I look around at such grand nature.....I have to conclude that they're the nutty ones. To think that this all came out of some big bang?? Are you serious? How can you look at such beauty and not know it had to come from something bigger...something beautiful and loving? Jesus might not be walkin' around today, but I tell you what, I see God EVERY day.
• And then...if God can make things as great as what I can see in nature, how much greater works does and can He do in His children...US...whom He loves??

Oh, dude. My Prius MPG so far has been 45.5 Apparently when I'm not in a hurry to get somewhere, I actually get the EPA. Lovin' it.

A few photos...many more to come later on FB.

 

Grand Tetons...so beautiful.

 

 

Bison...through the window. Careful, they could kill you.(That's what they say)

 

Old Faithful.

 

Paint Pot. Whatever the heck that means. Lots of these. Smelled.

 

The best part of the day...looks fake in pictures.Yellowstone canyon.

 

Lower falls. 

Well....that is all for today! Thanks for keeping up. Tomorrow it's off to Craters of the Moon and Boise with Bailey. Still looking for any connections in Portland or San Fran...hit me up if you've got em! 

God bless.

"...to the wilderness for prayer..."

There are multiple instances in the gospels where we see Jesus withdraw by himself to the wilderness, mountainside, somewhere alone...all for the purpose of spending time in prayer to His Father. (One of these occurs in Luke 5:16).

I have never been more serious about my prayer life than I have been these last few months, and I have been looking forward to this time in the wilderness like you wouldn't believe.

My soul is thirsty to not only vacation with my Lord, but to be surrounded by His majestic nature that has ALL been created solely by the works of His hands and breath. I just can't help but praise Him when I'm surrounded by such beauty!

I serve a GOOD God. And it's gonna be a great two weeks of just He and I.

I was gonna put some photos...but this wifi stinks. Check my twitter for now. @GetLoew.

Love you all and God bless!