Taco Seasoning!

One of my favorite things to do is cook! Especially when I have the time for it :). One of our favorite meals (like anyone) is tacos! It's such an easy fall-back meal. However, if you've ever been in the store and picked up pre-packaged taco seasoning you will notice how much sodium it has. It has a gunk-load. In light of that, Kyle and I have been using a simple mix of spices to create our own taco seasoning. Not only is it delish, but it also has so much less sodium. It makes taco night more enjoyable and healthy. I thought I would share it here: 

1 Tbsp chili powder

1 Tbsp cumin

1 Tbsp garlic powder

1 Tbsp onion powder 

1/4 - 1/2 crushed red pepper (if you want some extra spice) 

Enjoy!

P.S. I received this from my mother-in-law, Mary Lou, back when we moved to Kentucky. 

Alma Mater, Hail!

Last night, our wonderful friends, Isaac and Cameron came over to hang out and to have a night of worship. Isaac led the group with his wonderful talents – it was a great evening, relishing the presence of Jesus in our space. Afterwards, Isaac sent me a song that he wrote and World Witness Team at Southwestern recorded last year. The song is called “We Pray” and Isaac wrote it a couple of years ago during a 48 hour prayer event. I remember the moment he told us about it and introduced us to it in the Fall of 2009. It soon became a favorite of many at SC (and it’s still my favorite today). I’ve been listening to the recording that he sent me a lot this morning, partly because I am avoiding writing a paper and most of all because I love it. It’s so anointed and beautiful. It takes me back to Southwestern every time.

As I sit here and listen to it I can pick out many familiar voices – Esther, Anna, Raisa, to name a few. It humbles my soul when I remember my time at Southwestern and all of the amazing people I was able to meet and befriend over the last 4 years. I see how the Lord used me in that space and formed my calling in such a profound way. I don’t know what my future looks like in terms of physical job locations, but, after listening to “We Pray,” I am reminded of my love for students. I am reminded of my appreciation for students who are so open to the Lord and his leading. I am reminded of my great leaders – especially Ashlee Alley and Martin Rude, who both encouraged and shaped me in great ways. I thoroughly enjoy where I am now, while also realizing that my time at Southwestern was a sacred time and space in history. Someday, I hope I can create this space for students at a college or university. My greatest wish is that Jesus would use me to create such a sacred space for students, where gifts and callings are wrestled with and discovered. I hope to create a space for beautiful things – anointed things, so that when my students are far, far away someday, and they hear a song that their fellow peer wrote and their friends recorded, they are taken back and ushered into a time of thankfulness before the Lord.

P.S. Hail My Alma Mater for being such a special place. I am so happy to be an alumnus! And my picture is from the Worship Outreach Compilation Album, and my best guess is this was when "We Pray" was recorded! I had to have Isaac, the song writer and music man extraordinaire in the pic! 

JUST an E-mail

Normally, I don't double blog. But, I HAD to share this. My mom sent me a random e-mail today that she still had in her inbox (for some reason????). I wrote this to her four years ago, right after I moved to Winfield to go to college. It features a special character! Let's just say it's really funny to see how things work out. Here it is. Just to put things in context -- I am e-mailing my mom back about some questions and about coming home for fall break.

Hello!

The test was iffy. But I studied for it, and the things that I didn't know weren't even in my study guide, so I don't feel so bad. Anyway, all together, I think I at least did adequate. Not perfect, but definately not horrible, I don't think, at least. and YES it's been raining around here since yesterday, and it's really cold. I don't mind the rain so much, I just don't like walking in it when it's freezing cold outside. It like never stops here though. Just rains. It's quite interesting, compared to Western Kansas.

and YES again, I am ready to come home and visit everyone. And relax. I am tired of all this studying and what not. It's lots of work. And, I was talking to my friend, Kyle Just. He lives in Leoti and we talked about riding home together for fall break, I figured I would ask you to save some money in gas and to have a friend to ride home with!! Except, I don't want him to go way out of his way, but he goes through Scott City, so I was going to see if Mallory would be in Scott on Friday and if I could be picked up there. Just thought I would see what's going on there. Let me know, so I can let Kyle know!

I have to have 20 hours of observation. I have like 5 and a half right now, I think. OHHH thanks for reminding me I need to e-mail Mrs. Steinmetz. DEFINATELY e-mail Erin and see if I can come visit Paige and Cole!! I want to see them before they move :(

The Cookies are good,

Molly

That's the Kyle I married!! HA! And, look at me being a whiny baby about all the work I had to do in undergrad. 

Funnies!

Doin' Peachy, Just a Little Preachy

I just thought I would write a quick update while I had a moment. One of the challenges of seminary (and probably any graduate school) is that time really does escape from you. I know this is silly, but it's hard to even pick up the phone to chat to lots of folks. So, it's great for me to be able to blog while I take a break from homework and connect with eons of people who are important to me! Thank you, digital world.

I wanted to share an experience that I had a week ago now. Two Fridays ago, the seminary hosted a free healing conference and brought in a woman named Judith MacNutt to speak and lead the conference. Her husband, Frances MacNutt, and her are the founders of Christian Healing Ministries. If you've ever been involved in counseling before, especially Christian counseling, you have probably heard of them. Anyway, the Thursday before the conference, I was talking with the lady I work with, Sarah, and I was telling her how I really wanted to go, but probably wouldn't because it lasted all day on Friday and I had homework to do. Sarah, who has been in the counseling field herself, told me that I needed to go. She was like, "Molly, the MacNutts created a whole new idea in counseling when they introduced their form of healing ministry. I can't believe she is here and she is free. You have to go." Well, I am easily persuaded, so I decided for sure that I was going to go.

Friday rolled around and the conference began. It was great! Judith talked about the different components of being in a healing ministry and then, right before we left for lunch, she asked people in the room who were in need of physical healing to come forward. Many did! She told us we were going to pray for their healing. So, the rest of us acted as prayer ministers. We began praying, and she led us. The cool part -- people were physically healed -- not everyone, but some. It was awesome. However, the point I really wanted to communicate in this blog post is one that concerns the whole church -- all of humanity, really. Towards the end of the conference, they had the Asbury Healing Academy and other prayer ministers come forth. Then, they invited all of us up, one at a time, to be prayed for (if we wanted to be prayed for.) At first, I wasn't going to go. I wasn't sick. And, going up to the front to be prayed for makes me feel pretty vulnerable. However, one thing that I heard God say to me loud and clear was: "Molly, no one here is whole. Not one person. Go receive prayer." So, I did. Then, when I got into the realm of my particular prayer ministers, I just started talking all over the place. I told them how I was experiencing some anxiety because of moving and because Kyle didn't have a permanent job yet and yada yada yada. The things everyone here seems to worry about. However, one thing that I didn't tell them is that sometimes the anxiety is so great that it actually makes me doubt my call. There are moments when I am like, "What the heck am I doing here? Maybe I am not supposed to be here." My humanness gets the best of me. So, back to the story. The ministers just start praying. They pray for wholeness and relief from anxiety and so on and so forth. BUT, then, one of them said, "God we pray against the enemy. We pray against the power he has to make Molly doubt her call. We pray against the power the enemy has to make her believe that she isn't meant to be here at Asbury." I didn't know whether to be like this: : O or like this: : D! The girl read my mind. Actually, let's just say the Holy Spirit was present. Most importantly, though, in that moment all I felt was a rush of freedom. Jesus healed a lot of people that day, but you know what, he also healed me. He freed me from something I didn't even realize I was trapped in. Today, you might think you're whole. But, you know what, you probably aren't. That's why we need Jesus. I don't want to be all preachy, but I am serious. Jesus is the only one that can make us whole. Amen and amen.

Until we communicate via my blog again, I hope this story gives you some encouragement! And, if you ever have the chance to experience a prayer conference with the MacNutts, please go!

Food for Thought

As you can imagine, I run into a lot of really great people here at the seminary. Seriously, it's amazing. It's like you throw all the awesome people together in the world and *BAM,* here they are. One of the things that I absolutely love, whether at seminary or not, is hearing peoples' stories. In one of my classes, we have been split up into small groups where we share a ministry and vocational journey together for a semester. The other day, I was talking with my group and we were sharing our journeys of how we ended up at Asbury. One story especially stuck out to me and I knew right then that it was blog material.

The question was asked: if you could do anything in ministry, what would your dream job be? When we got around to one particular person, they said, "I would love to go live by myself in a cabin in the woods and minister to people through writing. I feel like I have been burned by people, burned by the church. I am starting to trust people again, which is how I ended up here, but it took awhile." He then went on to explain how prior to seminary, he had been extremely involved with a church. The leadership of this church, however, hurt more people than it helped. He then noted how he left the church and decided to attend culinary school (I told you people at seminary have good stories!). He excelled in culinary school, enjoyed it a lot and went on to work in a restaurant. He said, "You know, I was so sick of a church that hurt people. I worked with food because I was able to be a part of something that brought people together, slowed them down and had them listen to one another." Can you just imagine a chef, peering out at his restaurant from his kitchen? Watching people truly enjoy one another's company? You know, there is that couple over there in the corner on their first date, getting to know one another, wishing time would slow down. Then, there is that couple in the booth, to your left, who is celebrating their 35th anniversary, remembering all of the times they've had together and celebrating life. After that, in the back room, at the long table, there is that annual company meeting. These folks join together to discuss annual goals and progress and to identify where they are going to go, business wise, this year. Then, you have your normals, going out to eat because it is mom's night off. In all cases, food brings people together, and as a chef, that's something to be really proud of. To me, the mental image is really powerful. My new friend ended his story with this line: "I hope the church can slow down like that." Hmmm. Food for thought. And, I think it's like "Olive Garden" food for thought. Yeah?

Jiving

Are there ever times in your life when you sit back and just realize that you are totally and completely jiving in God's plan for you? I had to take a moment to write this week because I have been overwhelmed by God's faithfulness and generosity to us here in Wilmore. For the last couple of days, Kyle and I have been going through new student orientation at Asbury. When I first saw the schedule for NSO, I was automatically excited (which isn't normally the case for school orientation!). I knew the experience was going to be great -- and it was!

First, I have to say, the staff here is beyond exceptional. They have gone out of their way to know our names  and to connect with us on a personal level. Each and every staff person that we have met, from professors to housing directors constantly repeat, "We are here to serve you. Please, let us know how we can do that. We are here for you." It's made the transitional process so much easier. Also, the students are all that we dreamed. During NSO we had the opportunity to meet so many different people that are different ages and all of them have stories about God's faithfulness in their lives. People here embody and embrace the term "community." Here are just a few things that we experienced at NSO that we really enjoyed! 

• Obviously, meeting people has been one of the highlights; from single folks to married folks to toddlers and babies, we love all those who we've met so far! 
• Chapel was an exhilarating experience as the entire community prayed for us, commissioned us and welcomed us into their community. 
• Dinner at the President's estate at Rose Hill has to be on the top of my list. We enjoyed a nice garden party and got to tour the house! That was one of my favorite parts. 
• We enjoyed lunch with the faculty today.
• My absolute favorite part happened this morning during breakfast. One of the alumni coordinators asked us to raise our hand if we decided to come to Asbury because we were influenced by an alum. I looked around and almost everyone had their hand raised. That, to me, spoke volumes. When you have something good, word of mouth will be your best marketing tool. 

Rest assured, we are being taken care of here. As we transition into this stage of our ministry, Kyle and I would appreciate your prayers, as always! We also want our family and friends to know that this has to be one of the greatest places to be, so come and visit :). We are so excited to be a part of such a Spirit-filled community. We can't wait to live this story so that we can share it with others someday. Surely, God is with us! 

Kentucky Update

We are finally in Wilmore! We've hit the week mark and we're still alive, so that's a great thing :-)! Kyle's parents and my dad helped us move down last week. We arrived Monday evening and they left for home on Thursday morning. We were so thankful for their help moving and they even bought us a dresser! Aren't parents great? Moreover, we have seen God's hand move in mighty ways already, reassuring us that He is ever-present on this journey. I thought I would share a few of our "God gifts" as my mother-in-law, Mary Lou, refers to them as:

• The dresser was a definite God gift -- ours didn't make the trip so well, it was leaning tower of dresser, about to fall apart at any second. Of course, people can live without dressers, but it's a nice God gift given through our parents. 
• When transferring things into our name, we found out that we didn't have to pay a $125 water deposit because of good credit. Proof that credit cards used responsibly actually hold a lot of weight in some situations. 
• I had a job interview last Thursday and was offered a part-time job at the School of World Missions here at the Seminary. It was a definite God-gift to help bring a little bit more money into our budget each month.
• The people of Wilmore and everyone at the seminary are all God-gifts to us as well. Everyone has been more than helpful and welcoming, making us feel at home in return. That's hard to do when you're 1,000 miles away from home. 

This is a journey for sure. As we continue on it, we'd ask for your prayers in one significant way -- Kyle still needs a job. He is going through the process of becoming a substitute teacher, which should actually be a pretty good gig once all of the paperwork is finished. It's hard to get into the school systems down here unless you already have a Kentucky license. We are hoping that by substituting, he will be able to get his foot in the door. 

With that all said, we wish blessings on so many of our family and friends, who we carry with us. We especially think of our friends who are also away from home and on adventures of their own. Godspeed to the many who leave and sacrifice often, not out of selfishness, but out of calling. Amen!