Back to Life

This morning I was finally back in regular church service and was just in the congregation. A couple services I missed because of prior commitments and then I was also back in teaching the kids so it felt really good to just be there to worship and receive the message. I have been attending this church for so long the people are really like family to me, which really hit me hard this morning when I realized how much I missed them. Perhaps because we have common beliefs, perhaps because in reality I see them more than my regular family, but either way they really mean a lot to me. The lady I sit next to in my 'regular spot' is a woman that is a pillar of the church, everyone calls her gramma and I am no exception. When things were really out of hand at home and I wasn't around for a time she called and checked in on me just to make sure I was still hanging in and keeping the faith; that meant the world to me. The women there are like sisters and aunts to me, they've seen me through good times and bad and I never felt judged or condemed by them no matter what I confessed was going on. The P&W leaders as well as the pastors and have been supportive and encouraging as I work to follow God's call and lead the children in musical and dramatic endeavors. I never would have had the courage or motivation if it weren't for them, not to mention all the parents that loving let their children participate. We had a wonderful time of praise and worship this morning and God's presence was there very strongly. I had been going through a battle of the mind this week and during one song I just released it all to the Lord because I know it is not healthy or neccesary to carry those mental burdens around. When pastor got up to begin he started with a really strong Word saying that you can no longer be concerned with things of the past, what happened to you in the past, what someone did to you in the past, you must release and move forward into the destiny that God has set forth for you putting all your focus there and toward the future. Amen. When I left I felt so relieved and confirmed because I had already made that determination in my mind during worship, even before he spoke it. So what if someone didn't want you to have something, so what if someone didn't understand you or misinterpreted your motives, so what if you never got an apology when you felt you deserved one. If it is not blessed by God then I don't want it anyway. If it is tainted in anyway then it isn't worth it to have. The bottom line is even though there are things in the world and in people that I haven't gotten I know without a doubt God has given me much, I have all that I need through His riches and glory.

Bouquet Mandala, a digital creation by Sue O'Kieffe

Alexandra has now attended all her classes at least once and is really excited about this semester, most of all Intro to Screenwriting. She says it is going to be fun but also a lot of work. Keyboard class is a little challenging only because it is late in the day after having 3 other classes and her energy starts to wane. Her current motivation is to find new employment and she has applied at several places; she went from working 5 days a week to only getting 1 scheduled day and then thankfully picking up other people's shifts. She needs more than one shift a week, that won't even cover her gas expenses. I commend her for the effort and have also given her a heads up when I see signs for new hiring going on. Thankfully she has been blessed with another new/used vehicle which makes things much easier. It makes me laugh when she just calls me to fill me in on things even though she could have waited to tell me later, but that's good and I'm glad she wants to keep me in the loop and values my thoughts. I've become more aware of how I present my opinions to her as well. We've come a long way, baby!

I finally was able to attend an LCCC Board Meeting and will soon be a new VP focusing mainly on PR which is pretty cool. My section leader noticed an article in our school news about my work with the school choirs and gave me kudos at the meeting which was very kind. I'm looking forward to getting to know our director more to and possibly working on other projects in the future. Another exciting development is my buddy from GTC has forged out on his own and opened a gym in Orion Twp. called FlipShop The open house will be over the next two weekends so if you live in the area please pass the word and check out the facilities (they're offering homeschool classes too). Ethan is interested in joining a tumbling class and I may investigate employment opportunities there as well, we'll see.

Check out this video from a story done by CNN about Buddhist monks creating a sand mandala, pretty incredible in my humble opinion......nobody sneeze!