Fifteen Pairs of Hands

Well, we made it to Kansas! Unfortunately, it wasn't quite as easy as clicking our red heels together and appearing in Winfield (an ongoing joke from our Kentucky friends especially), but I do have to say that things went VERY smoothly. One of the things that humbled and impressed me the most was the Church.

Let me tell you -- one of the greatest things about the Church universal is that no matter where you go, God's people will be there, somewhere. I am moved by this truth.

Our sweet friends in Kentucky had a surprise going away party for us on Thursday evening last week (was that seriously a week ago!?). So many of our dear friends came to hang out with us one last time and say goodbye. Before things wrapped up, many of them asked us what time they needed to be there to help us move. Additionally, our country church that previous Sunday asked us what time they needed to be there to help us move. We never had to really ask for help because the Church asked first and showed up ready to go. We packed at 7 AM on Saturday morning and we were not only finished packing everything at 9:30 AM, but we were also finished cleaning the house. We left Wilmore and were on the road to Kansas shortly before 10. As someone who has moved time and time again and has watched others move, 2 1/2 hours is amazing time to have everything done. But, then again, things happen almost as fast as clicking red heels when you have 15 pairs of hands!

We spent two days driving to Kansas and arrived on Sunday afternoon. Of course, the first thing we did was eat at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants here in Winfield -- El Maguey. Hashtag priorities. Then, we moved into our new-to-us bungalow! While we had 15 hands to help us move on the "going" end, we had just as many, if not more on the receiving end. Again, God's Church showed up and even asked us how they could help before we even had to ask them. The move went quick, quick, quick. What a blessing.

John Wesley wrote a phenomenal sermon called "Of the Church" that I read for a class prior to moving. His words have shaped me, especially as we've moved and have been on the receiving end of the Church's love and grace several times during this last month. Wesley notes about the Church:

"How much do we almost continually hear about the Church! With many it is matter of daily conversation. And yet how few understand what they talk of! How few know what the term means! A more ambiguous word than this, the Church, is scarce to be found in the English language. It is sometimes taken for a building, set apart for public worship: sometimes for a congregation, or body of people, united together in the service of God. It is only in the latter sense that it is taken in the ensuing discourse..."

Wesley goes on to talk about how the church is where two or three are gathered together (Matthew 18:20) or how Philemon's household was considered to be a church. For Wesley, the Church is a body that is vocationally called to the services of God. Surely, then, 15 pairs of hands and hearts that arrive at 7 AM on a Saturday morning are the Church! And 15 hands that spend their Sunday afternoon unloading a moving truck are the Church!

I think I will let that speak for itself. All I can say to God and the Church is "thank you;" what happened on Saturday and Sunday should be an expectation for anyone that moves! This is a beautiful example of how the healthy Church should function at all times. Of course, life isn't all about the Church helping people move (unless you're at Asbury Seminary!), but the Church is about helping people period. There's a special type of hospitality in our world that can only be given by the Church and the Spirit. Thank you, Church and Spirit, for giving us that hospitality in abundance these last two weeks. From Kentucky to Kansas, God's Church is alive and well. I learned this through at least fifteen pairs of hands. Amen.

Some of our hands on the Kentucky end! Thanks Isaac Chua for photos of this amazing adventure.

Moving always means leaving people that you love a lot! Lauren and Michelle -- two gems I met at Asbury.

Our new bungalow! Isn't it cute?

The Dads ready to go and pretty proud that absolutely nothing shifted in the trailer during our 13 hour trip. Awesome or what?

How much do we almost continually hear about the Church! With many it is matter of daily conversation. And yet how few understand what they talk of! How few know what the term means! A more ambiguous word than this, the Church, is scarce to be found in the English language. It is sometimes taken for a building, set apart for public worship: sometimes for a congregation, or body of people, united together in the service of God. It is only in the latter sense that it is taken in the ensuing discourse. - See more at: http://www.umcmission.org/Find-Resources/John-Wesley-Sermons/Sermon-74-Of-the-Church#sthash.gEBD4cRb.dpuf

How much do we almost continually hear about the Church! With many it is matter of daily conversation. And yet how few understand what they talk of! How few know what the term means! A more ambiguous word than this, the Church, is scarce to be found in the English language. It is sometimes taken for a building, set apart for public worship: sometimes for a congregation, or body of people, united together in the service of God. It is only in the latter sense that it is taken in the ensuing discourse. - See more at: http://www.umcmission.org/Find-Resources/John-Wesley-Sermons/Sermon-74-Of-the-Church#sthash.gEBD4cRb.dpuf

Merry Got Me Thinking

On Christmas Eve, Seth Godin (an excellent marketing blogger that you should follow) wrote a short blog called "Merry." The point of this little blurb was "you can't be merry by yourself."

"Merry" got me thinking. You really can't be merry by yourself. One of the greatest gifts that God gives us is other people -- both people that we know and people that we don't know. I don't personally know Seth Godin, but he impacts my brain, in a good way, I think. Sometimes we are blessed from a distance by the presence of other people. It must have been the same for Joseph and Mary. Two people, probably not with a lot of friends after (what seems to be) a pregnancy scandal. However, the birth of a child -- a Savior brings a little "merry" to the scene. Shepherds come and wise men come from afar, bringing good gifts to people they do not even know.

I would have to say that the Christmas season calls us to be merry for more than just the simple idea that Christmas should be a time filled with charity and warmth. It seems scriptural for us to be together. As Godin writes, "merriment requires a group" -- whether that's a group of rejoicing strangers or close family members. So, let us choose to be together this season and always, celebrating the mystery of merriment as we rejoice in Christ.

A Glorious Awakening!

It's been awhile since I have posted. I just wanted to jot this down while it was still fresh in my mind. Things have been going amazingly well with the prayer room effort. God has continuously been providing in ways that are unfathomable! This past Sunday we started decorating the prayer room with the supplies we have had donated. Jessica's home church and her Grandma's church have been amazing supports! We are also gearing up for 46 Hours of unbroken prayer this weekend. Unfortunately, because of library policy, we couldn't do our 46 hours of prayer in the library where our new prayer room is going to be, so we decided to rent out another hall on campus called "Wroten." It's a much bigger room with a whiteboard and will still require some decorating, but that's the wonderful and fun part! We are so excited about what God's going to do through this prayer weekend. After the prayer weekend, the prayer room in the library will be open for good during library hours and will be available to all students and staff. Tonight, Jessica and I led prayer group and we decided that we would ask everyone in prayer group to come down and help us "consecrate" the room for about 45 minutes or so. Usually our group runs anywhere from 5 to 7 people. Tonight there were 11 there, including one person who we've been praying specifically for! He's a guy we know on our campus who is on the brink of really committing to Jesus. Jessica started out prayer group with the purple journal I've referred to in earlier posts about the prayer room, and she read some of the prayers from years past. We told them our story and how we felt called by the Lord to do this prayer room thing, then we went down and asked everyone to help us consecrate the room. Currently we have three walls -- the "Welcome Wall" which tells people what the prayer room is about and includes some prayers from the purple prayer journal, the "Word Wall," which is for bible verses and other things the Lord's been speaking to people, and last of all we have the "Wailing Wall," which is a wall dedicated to prayer requests. While we were all off praying, writing, painting and drawing everyone was so dedicated. People were crying and praying over one another and hugging. Students were hanging their prayers and art all over the new walls. Then, at the very end, we all huddled in a circle and put our arms around one another and three students -- Jessica, Derreck, and Mariam led us in corporate prayer. IT WAS AMAZING. The spirit was so alive in the room, people were still crying silent tears and voicing loud "Yes's" in agreement to prayer. Afterwards, we had students stay around to talk to one another while a couple of other students spent time writing and drawing. The whole thing, which started at 9:15 p.m. was officially over at 11:30p.m. God is already doing an amazing work and I cannot wait to see what He does as this weekend approaches, and as this year continues. Thank you for all of your prayers! They mean the world. Jesus is changing students around here, He's giving beauty for ashes and bringing fresh restoration to those who are broken and lost in this mediocre world. It's truly a blessing.

Please keep praying! We'd love for you to pray specifically for our campus, our students, and also a couple of specific guys on campus who are really searching and finding Jesus. Pray for a breakthrough this weekend. A glorious awakening is taking place, of this I AM confident. God's moving. It's not about us, but about Him alone.

Blessings!