Look... and be amazed!

I love getting mail. It doesn't matter what kind of mail it is -- from a friend, family member, an advertisment, or even a student loan bill -- if I've got something personally mailed to me in MY name, I feel special. I'm sure it's the same for most all of us. We feel this need to be known. We don't feel accepted at work until our coworkers get to know us. We don't have a close friend or group of friends until they've had the chance to know us. It's who we are, what we do, and how we were created. To love, and to be loved. To know, and to be known.

We all have this curiousity in us that drives our lives. We want to know where we're going to college, what kind of job we need, how much money we'll make, who we're going to marry, how many children we'll have, when we're going to retire, how many friends we'll have, when our parents will pass away, where we're needed, who needs us, why we feel alone, who is taking care of us when we get older, how much we'll spend on gas, groceries, and, I mean, the list could literally go on forever! We are just driven to know it all.

Well, okay... I am driven to know it all! Not a day goes by that I don't sit and wonder how my life will turn out. I've got plans for my life -- big ones and small ones -- but it's so hard for me knowing that all of these are uncertain. I used to think life would be so much easier if God would send me a little letter in the mail with an entire list of the things I was going to accomplish in my life. And after being frustrated time and time again, I didn't even care about what would be in the letter -- just that I would be able to know how my life would turn out. It made perfect sense that God should do this for me.

Then I came across a verse so powerful that I can't stop thinking about it. Habakkuk 1:5 "Look at the nations and watch -- and be amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told." In the verses right before the Lord speaks, Habakkuk is questioning if God is on his side. One of those, "God where are you right now? Do you even know what you're doing? Why can't I know everything?" kind of comments, ya know? And then the LORD speaks.... Habakkuk, you've got it all wrong! I've got things taken care of, and even if I did tell you how things would pan out, it's so amazing and wonderful that you wouldn't believe it! I mean, if that's not the beauty of God, then what is?! So no matter how many goals we set or how much we want to know or what we plan for our lives, even those things are far less than what God actually has in store for us!

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine according to his power that is at work within us. To Him be the glory in the church, and in Christ Jesus, throughout all generations forever and ever, amen."

It was good!

I recently took a look at a friend's pictures she posted online. I guess her family spent their Thanksgiving holiday near some caves, and they took a tour of some kind to explore one of the caves. After looking through them I decided that caves are one of my favorite things that God created. 

I've always enjoyed nature. I grew up going camping almost every month. My family was introduced to it when I was in the 2nd grade, and even though our first experience washorrible, we took camping trips almost monthly until I was a freshman in college.  I also spent every summer of my college career working in the middle of an amazingly beautiful mountain range -- Sangre de Cristo. So I've grown up in the middle of nature. I've seen trees with trunks so big you were out of breath by the time you circled the whole thing. I've climbed mountains with views that are literally breathtaking. I've seen geysers that shoot up straight in the air like rockets. I've been in the middle of lightning storms that feel like the end of the world. I've touched dinosaur fossils, gigantic plants, glaciers, and animals of all kinds. I've seen numerous waterfalls and lakes. I've even been underground exploring some of the most amazing caves in our nation. And after everything I've seen, experienced, touched or smelled, I decided tonight that caves were my favorite God-creation. 

So, what is it about God's creation that is just so enchanting? Think about it -- this Earth is so beautiful. It's filled with deserts, rain forests, oceans, tundras, mountains, valleys, lakes, rivers, caves, etc, etc. All of it was created by God himself. He spoke and it was formed. And there's so much detail to this Earth, too! Have you ever studied the formation of stalagmites/stalactites?Or how powerful the tail of a kangaroo is? Earth and all creation is not just a surface thing. No, it goes much deeper than that (no pun intended). There are wonders to the wonders of this Earth. Even outside the Earth -- I mean, outer space just speaks for itself! And the greatest part? We are much more important to Him than this Earth! (Matthew 6:26) 

That's why all of this is so beautiful. The same beauty we see in a mountain sunrise or a cave millions of miles below the Earth's surface has the same beauty of God. Except God's beauty is so much more than we can imagine. I see the beauty of this Earth and think to myself, "God created this for temporary use... I wonder how God created Heaven -- a place for eternity?!" Pretty neat stuff, huh?

Book Review

My current book selection is UnChristian: What A New Generation Really Thinks About Christianity by David Kinnaman. First, I've been reading it since September, and second, I'm only about 5 or 6 chapters in. 

If you don't know anything about the book, read this paragraph. If you already know, skip it. [Taken from Amazon.com] Kinnaman, the president of the Barna Institute, was inspired to write this book when Lyons (of the Fermi Project) commissioned him to do extensive research on what young Americans think about Christianity. Lyons had a gut-level sense that something was desperately wrong, and three years of research paints exactly that picture. Mosaics and Busters (generations that include late teens to early 30-somethings) believe Christians are judgmental, anti-homosexual, hypocritical, too political and sheltered. This is a wonderful, thoughtful book that conveys difficult truths in a spirit of humility. 

I wanted to write about a chapter that I currently finished reading.  I think what made me the most upset was the section about the views of young Christians today. You see, the following are moral issues that born-again young Christians (23-41) believe are morally acceptable:

cohabitation (59%)

gambling (58%)

sexual thoughts or fantasies about someone (57%)

sex outside of marriage (44%)

using profanity (37%)

getting drunk (35%)

looking at pics of nudity or sexually explicit behavior (33%)

having an abortion (32%)

have a sexual relationship with someone of the same sex (28%)

using drugs not prescribed for you (16%)

allowing the f-word on broadcast television (7%)

(Kinnaman, 2007)

Do we see something wrong? There are more people who care about stopping the f-word from national television than those who care about stopping homosexuality. Disturbing, I know. 

If I ever get the chance to have 12-14 teenage girls sitting in front of me again, this will be something I'd say -- Stop it. Cut it out. It's lame, and not worth it. Would that be enough, though? I wanted for so long to shake some girl's head and say, "QUIT IT!" Even sometimes I feel like a failure because I choose an action that makes my Christian lifestyle choice look "dirty." I hate it! But I guess the response to these criticisms about hypocrisy would be, "Hey, I'm a sinner. I've got this disease called sin. Gives me a lot of dis-ease, and I don't want it. But I can't get rid of it. Some days I'm going to choose to drink. Some days I'm going to choose to the right decision. Some days I'm going to curse, and some days I'm going to pray all day long. But every day I'm going to remember how the God I serve, Yahweh, saved me from the pit." 

Declaration!

Recently, I heard of a friend who carries around in his pocket a list of 100 things he wants to do before he dies. It was such an inspiring concept, that I decided to try and make my "100 things..." list to carry around with me as well. As I'm writing out as many things that I think I'd like to do before I do -- I start to think about the idea of writing out a motto for myself to live by. Thoughts like, "If I were to go to sleep tonight, and not wake up in the morning, what would people say about me at my funeral?" come rushing through my head, and while I'd like to think that people would be interested in reading about my conquests/ideas of climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro or getting a tattoo, all in all, I'd much rather hear my friends, family, and even acquaintances stand up in front of everyone and talk about the type of woman that they thought I was. This is what led me to the thought of writing out motto for myself. 

I've been blessed to have had such great role models in my life. Some of the greatest role models I've had have been women, and almost every woman that I have worked with, learned from, listened to, or lived with has given me an example of the type of woman I want to be one day. The thing is -- I'm tired of me thinking that "one day" I'm going to magically turn into a collaboration of all the women who have affected my life in a positive way. I'm not going to wake up one morning and have Jan's trusting attitude or Aunt Lisa's selfless servitude. No, it's much harder to get there -- which is the reason why I've come up with this motto. This motto or paragraph is a description of the type of woman that I want to be. Something I can tangibly hold in my hand to help remind me that one day my friends, family, and colleagues will speak at my funeral, and that I don't want them to have to stretch any sort of truth about who I was.

I want to be that woman that is confident in herself. Who walks into a room and suddenly brings laughter, entertainment, peace, and gentleness all at one time. The woman who does so much for others, and rarely is seen doing much for herself. Who takes the time to appreciate what God has given her, not what God should be giving her. The friend who laughs when you laugh, cries when you cry, and everything else in between. The woman who takes care of those who need care, who loves those who need love, and shines Christ all the time for all people who see her. The woman who is carefully making and basing her decisions around what glorifies God, while also thinking about how her ministry to others can benefit from her decisions. The woman who is willing to deeply love and honor the man that God prepared for her, yet still holding her deepest love and honor for her first -- God. The woman who is nothing short of an excellent mother, not just to the public, but in her children's eyes as well. The woman who knows she's a sinner -- imperfect, impure, stained, and sinful -- yet still a beautiful daughter of the King. 

This is the woman I strive to be. This is the woman God will help me become. 

Religion and Politics

Considering this political race -- Have you ever been to Washington D.C.? When I was in 8th grade, I got the chance to take a summer trip there, and it was wonderful. I am so thankful that I have experienced the Lincoln Monument, the Washington Monument, the White House, Jefferson Monument, and other great places there. Thinking back, I didn't have much appreciation for everything we were being shown. Of course, I've got about 10 rolls of film lying around somewhere with at least 20 "different" pictures of the White House. However, looking back, visiting those places did not mean much to me as I believe it would now. It's one of the reasons why I love the National Treasure movies so much. Being so appreciative of all that went into the development of this country is quite moving, and I hope that I get the chance to experience Washington D.C. again with more appreciation and respect. 

I sometimes want to experience the same thing with places like Rome and Israel. I wonder what it would be like to walk around in Rome. To stand in a prison cell in Rome and think, "Paul himself praised the same God I praise here in this cell!" Or to be able to walk down a dirty busy old street in Israel and think to yourself, "My Jesus, my father, my life... he walked here." 

I desire to do that so much. I want to be so close to my Father -- all.the.time. A desire I believe I gained while at Camp Blue Haven this summer. I can remember exactly when I felt this feeling. It was 4th session Hobo Dinner Cookout night, and 4 high school groups (8 altogether) experienced a passover feast together in the barn. We moved all the chairs and about 80 of us sat in a circle and shared an intimate and thought provoking meal together. Afterwards we started to praise and sing worship songs in honor of what the Israelites might have done in a typical Passover meal. We turned off all the lights, and formed a huddle and crammed together... not any type of shape really, just tight-knit. I remember singing so loudly along with everyone else I could barely hear any one particular voice -- it was just one loud praise and cryout to God. It was at that moment... the moment I couldn't think of anything else but God; the moment when I didn't care about the girl behind me singing off-key; the moment when I had nothing left to give my own self because I had given it all to God... it was at these moments when I thought about for the first time in my life -- "I can't wait to go to Heaven. If Christ came back right now, I would be so excited." 

It was that thought, that moment, and that feeling that changed my entire life. I no longer am afraid to die, or to leave loved ones behind. No matter how many places I've called home, I'm not there yet. And I won't be satisfied as a Christian human being, until I'm in Heaven shouting, "Be to Our God" alongside my brothers and sisters who also obeyed and served our Lord while on Earth. It's an emotion I can't quite explain really, and when I do try to explain the emotion, nothing but tears come strolling down my face because I am filled with such contentment, joy, and peace. 

So as we watch and interest ourselves in this crazy political race, let's not forget who our true, and perfect Lord is -- Jesus Christ. Be to His name forever and ever, Amen!

sushi

This past Saturday a friend of mine, Cara, and I went and tried a new sushi place in Downtown OKC. The website for the place looked really awesome [www.sushineko.com] and we even had to make a reservation, but I wasn't too sure about it once I got there. I mean, the only times I've ever eaten sushi, I've been to the point of starvation -- meaning that whatever I ate (raw tuna, seaweed, rice, octopus, squid, etc, etc) would have tasted good. But this time -- no, this time -- I was eating sushi because I "liked" it. So what's the verdict?

I love it!! 

I'm just so glad I really honestly, truly love sushi! We split 4 different hand-rolls: Rainbow Roll, Spider Roll, Sassy Shrimp, and Tuna Roll. I was a BIG fan of the spider roll and sassy shrimp. I've had rainbow roll before, and liked it, but this past time I wasn't a fan. 

I bet most of you who have known me or think you know me are scratching your head and thinking, "Rachel does not seem like the adventurous eating type." And my reply is: "Yep, I am and I think that's what is going to make my future adventures in other countries so successful." If I had tried to live in another culture 4 years ago... I wouldn't be caught dead eating anything other than food I've already tasted and enjoy. But now, I'm game for almost anything! (well, except that rainbow roll :))

Time Machine

Well, another week has just flown by! I had dinner at Chipotle with a couple friends who are graduating with me in December, and we talked a lot about the fact that September is basically gone. Where did it go? At the same time, however, I've been feeling like time is passing very slowly. 

I've been making headway about future plans. I'm not really going to go into detail, because I feel like I touch on it so much, but just know, that I will be out of the country in a year's time. Whether I am in Mexico or Japan... it doesn't matter. I will be making some adventures for myself!

I've got a busy day tomorrow! Hopefully I can get everything done! Have a great weekend!