for the past several (i think 5 or 6) years, my christmas duty has been to write the "traditional" family christmas letter. that annual thing that goes out at the end of every year and recounts only family highlihts.....sound familiar?
well.....this year, the chrismas letter is available via email in a jpg format. if you're interested, send send me a location and i'll get it to you soon.
so as to not give the surprises in this year's letter away.......here's last year's edition.....
23.12.08
the end
someone reminded me recently that i haven't blogged in a while....
holy smokes! it's been about two months!
the end of this last semester was overwhelming to say the least. no-sleep-november quickly progressed to dead-week and then finals.......ugh....
funny thing though. now that the semester is over.....and the grades are all in.....i don't remember the pain and stress nearly as vividly as the incredible support of friends, roommates, and mentors during that season.
thank you, friends. all of you who prayed/continue to pray for strength and healing. and darn it! words just aren't adequate right now. i'm so blessed.......there's little more i can say.....
holy smokes! it's been about two months!
the end of this last semester was overwhelming to say the least. no-sleep-november quickly progressed to dead-week and then finals.......ugh....
funny thing though. now that the semester is over.....and the grades are all in.....i don't remember the pain and stress nearly as vividly as the incredible support of friends, roommates, and mentors during that season.
thank you, friends. all of you who prayed/continue to pray for strength and healing. and darn it! words just aren't adequate right now. i'm so blessed.......there's little more i can say.....
15.10.08
quick thought before my paper
as tyler said......"liturgical chapel is one of those gems..." (or something like that)
i love liturgy
it reminds me of my participation in this family of God that extends beyond borders, denominations, cultures, generations, etc.
during a liturgical service, i am no longer alone in my Christianity
God is no longer engaged in conversation with me alone
WE are together
liturgy = We and God
....
at least that's what i thought
but what about when liturgy was first composed?
what about this council of nicea, or this spanish inquisition? the crusades? nazi germany? what about all the voices and traditions of the early Church that were ignored in the creation of sayings that would be repeated for centuries in the future?
please don't mis-interpret what i'm saying. i still love liturgy, and will always love the depth and intimacy and communion that comes with participation in traditional sacraments. but if i am going to join in this community that spans generations, then i am going to join in the sins of those have come before me. in some respect, my identity will always be tied to them.
i honestly don't know what to do with that.
amazing grace, how sweet the sound....
i love liturgy
it reminds me of my participation in this family of God that extends beyond borders, denominations, cultures, generations, etc.
during a liturgical service, i am no longer alone in my Christianity
God is no longer engaged in conversation with me alone
WE are together
liturgy = We and God
....
at least that's what i thought
but what about when liturgy was first composed?
what about this council of nicea, or this spanish inquisition? the crusades? nazi germany? what about all the voices and traditions of the early Church that were ignored in the creation of sayings that would be repeated for centuries in the future?
please don't mis-interpret what i'm saying. i still love liturgy, and will always love the depth and intimacy and communion that comes with participation in traditional sacraments. but if i am going to join in this community that spans generations, then i am going to join in the sins of those have come before me. in some respect, my identity will always be tied to them.
i honestly don't know what to do with that.
amazing grace, how sweet the sound....
15.9.08
scheduling.
so.....i have this habit.....
i like my days to have purpose and meaning. i like them to be full of stuff to do......places to be.....people to talk with.....
i like that every day in israel was full of activity and learning from the moment we woke up to the moment we crawled into bed. i like that my team planned every minute of camp with stuff designed to draw the campers into a family. i like hearing people say, "it's only monday?!?!?! we've done so much already!!!" i like busyness because it makes me feel less wasteful.
but there's a problem.......
busyness often leads to weariness........
it seems inevitable......i'm almost counting down the days before my roommates and i get overwhelmed with the new college schedule. there's a looming dread of "no-sleep-november" and "midterm-maddness." in spite of all the joys and excitements of the first few weeks, the hellish-winter is always waiting........taunting even......
what does it take to avoid the bitterness of winter? i mean, why shouldn't we be able to continue in joyful spirits.....knowing that every minute we live is a minute of purpose? why shouldn't we be excited to wake up at 7:00am in order to make it to class/work on time?
hmm.......maybe that's it. maybe there's a "we" factor to this whole mess. maybe the weariness comes from carrying too many burdens on our own personal shoulders? maybe sometime between september and november, we turn our focus towards individual miderms, and forget about the community? we forget about how these midterms can affect the global Church, and just strive to get that grade that we need.......or something.
maybe i'm stretching a bit too much. but i really want to know what it is that keeps me in good spirits during camp, and prevents me from those good spirits during finals......and i want to know why that can't be avoided.
i like my days to have purpose and meaning. i like them to be full of stuff to do......places to be.....people to talk with.....
i like that every day in israel was full of activity and learning from the moment we woke up to the moment we crawled into bed. i like that my team planned every minute of camp with stuff designed to draw the campers into a family. i like hearing people say, "it's only monday?!?!?! we've done so much already!!!" i like busyness because it makes me feel less wasteful.
but there's a problem.......
busyness often leads to weariness........
it seems inevitable......i'm almost counting down the days before my roommates and i get overwhelmed with the new college schedule. there's a looming dread of "no-sleep-november" and "midterm-maddness." in spite of all the joys and excitements of the first few weeks, the hellish-winter is always waiting........taunting even......
what does it take to avoid the bitterness of winter? i mean, why shouldn't we be able to continue in joyful spirits.....knowing that every minute we live is a minute of purpose? why shouldn't we be excited to wake up at 7:00am in order to make it to class/work on time?
hmm.......maybe that's it. maybe there's a "we" factor to this whole mess. maybe the weariness comes from carrying too many burdens on our own personal shoulders? maybe sometime between september and november, we turn our focus towards individual miderms, and forget about the community? we forget about how these midterms can affect the global Church, and just strive to get that grade that we need.......or something.
maybe i'm stretching a bit too much. but i really want to know what it is that keeps me in good spirits during camp, and prevents me from those good spirits during finals......and i want to know why that can't be avoided.
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