This day started with a luncheon for the lady Ms and the ladies of FBCR. (the men Ms were treated to an early breakfast and some kind of manly outing.) Yummy chicken wraps and salad hit the spot on my food plan! I enjoyed it very much. My table-mates were fun to talk with. There are so many people who have been role models for me and great encouragers. I know I have not thanked them enough. I hope that God will give them a big heart-hug from me.
The 3 year old choir sang for us. How precious!! Then we M ladies sat up front and were asked questions about our lives and our ministries. It was very informative and funny. I enjoyed it very much.
After the luncheon, I got to spend a few hours with one of my best friends from Rogers and cohort from years past, Sherrie. It was sooooo wonderful to be with her. We have worked beside each other in millions of hours of serving with missions and the puppet team and creative ministries team and Youth on Mission and mission trips to Monterrey MX , and on and on… She is such a blessing to me!!! We hit the new Target store that opened here in Rogers, TJ Maxx (to get a top for me to wear with a beautiful jacket I received from Miss Kaye), and then off to the Lifeway Christian store! I picked out a wonderful new Bible for my brother-in-law. I could spend days in that store, but we went back to the church and sat and talked for awhile. It was a great afternoon.
I got the chance to talk with kids on Saturday evening. My friend Jeff used a puppet to interview me. The kids listened really well and asked a few questions. I visited the breakout rooms that they were rotating through for missions movie and popcorn, Bible study, crafts, activities and more. It was so fun. The theme was baseball and one of the crafts was to make a picture frame using little baseball bats. My picture, with a baseball hat superimposed on my head, was put in the frame. It looks really funny and fun!
I was allowed an early evening, so off to the Burns’ for some more rest. Their granddaughter, Sarah came by to visit. We talked about her life as a highschool student and dancer. We also reminisced about when I used to babysit her and her brother, Kris. Again… these kids keep growing up!!
Just thinking about changing the clocks for the next day made us tired, so I went to bed really early Sat night. It was nice!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Friday, March 6, 2009
This day started off with a luncheon for the Ms and the FBC Rogers staff. It was good to chat with some of the people that I served with while on staff myself for 3 years. I have to say that I wasn’t very good about my food situation today. I went to the luncheon very hungry and ate too much protein since it was the only thing I could eat. I ended up sick for the afternoon. That just reminded me that I can’t do this on my own. I need God’s grace to get me through each day at the food trough. After some tummy meds, green tea and a restful visit with two lovely friends, I was feeling much better. I did, however, opt to skip the Children of the World concert and stay in for the night. A dinner of just veggies had me back on track, and giving control back to God.
At the Staff Luncheon, Bro Wes asked the Ms if there was anything we wanted the Staff to pray over us about. I thought about asking for healing from the liver stuff, but the more that I think about it, I am thankful that it is actually a day-to-day process. It keeps me connected to God just that much more closely. It also reminds me that like the diligence of watching what goes into my body, I need to be just as diligent about what is going into my heart and mind every day. I need these hands-on experiences to make it stick!
Having tea with Nancy and Jean was so refreshing. We chatted and looked at NYC pics and they blessed me with a wonderful love gift and also a really neat Bible to use for leading study groups. How precious!
It’s been so relaxing staying with Kaye and Dean. Kaye and I talk about foods (she’s an awesome caterer), family, faith and lots of female stuff! Dean is fun to tease. He’s very serious. I count it a joy when I can make him grin. Staying in their guest room is like being in the best NYC hotel. (well, at least what I would imagine it to be!) They are very gracious and generous in offering me a refreshing respite.
At the Staff Luncheon, Bro Wes asked the Ms if there was anything we wanted the Staff to pray over us about. I thought about asking for healing from the liver stuff, but the more that I think about it, I am thankful that it is actually a day-to-day process. It keeps me connected to God just that much more closely. It also reminds me that like the diligence of watching what goes into my body, I need to be just as diligent about what is going into my heart and mind every day. I need these hands-on experiences to make it stick!
Having tea with Nancy and Jean was so refreshing. We chatted and looked at NYC pics and they blessed me with a wonderful love gift and also a really neat Bible to use for leading study groups. How precious!
It’s been so relaxing staying with Kaye and Dean. Kaye and I talk about foods (she’s an awesome caterer), family, faith and lots of female stuff! Dean is fun to tease. He’s very serious. I count it a joy when I can make him grin. Staying in their guest room is like being in the best NYC hotel. (well, at least what I would imagine it to be!) They are very gracious and generous in offering me a refreshing respite.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
I’m staying in two different homes while in Rogers, so my stuff is strung out across town, including leaving things in Kellie’s office. After a yummy bowl of Kaye’s oatmeal and morning chat with her and Dean, I headed off to collect things I needed for the day. Lunch with the Senior Adult ministry was great. It’s so good to see friends and hear what all is going on with them. The Saints Alive Choir (senior adult choir) sang beautifully and I loved every note!
All the Ms trotted over to the auditorium for some Q & A time with the Christian School kids. Many of them remembered me as the Puppet Lady, who would perform puppets in Chapel every once in a while. These kids also collected socks to send to me in NYC to be given out to the homeless. My, how they are growing up.
I was blessed to spend an hour with my former neighbor, Mrs. Christy. She is a very special lady in my life. She was there to take care of me during illness, drive me to and from work when I had a walking cast, be a loving mentor, and just a great all around neighbor!
Then off to a dinner hosted by 3 of the Adult Bible Fellowship classes who are sponsoring me this week. We ate at Golden Corral, which had plenty of variety of good stuff for me. And I have to say that the ‘bad’ stuff looked pretty good, too. But I’ve been faithful to eat what’s best for me. And I can assure you that it is taking a lot of Grace from God to do it. Anyway, these lovely people listened to me ramble about serving in NYC and how faithful God has been to me. They asked questions, listened intently and even laughed at my jokes! Now that’s true friendship. In this group of people are some of best role models and encouragers I have been blessed to know. They showered me with gifts (much needed lotions and potions) and money to help me make it in NYC. They are my heroes.
This week has really flown by, but it has been so full, that it feels like it’s been more than a week here. I’m soaking up every minute of it.
God is so full of love and compassion. He gives us so much in our lives to make us happy. I’m so thankful to Him.
Now, off to bed so I can start another fun filled day tomorrow!!
All the Ms trotted over to the auditorium for some Q & A time with the Christian School kids. Many of them remembered me as the Puppet Lady, who would perform puppets in Chapel every once in a while. These kids also collected socks to send to me in NYC to be given out to the homeless. My, how they are growing up.
I was blessed to spend an hour with my former neighbor, Mrs. Christy. She is a very special lady in my life. She was there to take care of me during illness, drive me to and from work when I had a walking cast, be a loving mentor, and just a great all around neighbor!
Then off to a dinner hosted by 3 of the Adult Bible Fellowship classes who are sponsoring me this week. We ate at Golden Corral, which had plenty of variety of good stuff for me. And I have to say that the ‘bad’ stuff looked pretty good, too. But I’ve been faithful to eat what’s best for me. And I can assure you that it is taking a lot of Grace from God to do it. Anyway, these lovely people listened to me ramble about serving in NYC and how faithful God has been to me. They asked questions, listened intently and even laughed at my jokes! Now that’s true friendship. In this group of people are some of best role models and encouragers I have been blessed to know. They showered me with gifts (much needed lotions and potions) and money to help me make it in NYC. They are my heroes.
This week has really flown by, but it has been so full, that it feels like it’s been more than a week here. I’m soaking up every minute of it.
God is so full of love and compassion. He gives us so much in our lives to make us happy. I’m so thankful to Him.
Now, off to bed so I can start another fun filled day tomorrow!!
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
I started the day (after quiet time and journaling, of course) by working for 3 hours on putting together the slideshow of NYC pics for my GIC display. It’s so hard to choose what pics to use and if there are too many or not enough and… I finally finished this project about 30 minutes before the displays had to be open. A few hours were spent on putting together all the stuff I had brought from NYC. It’s the first time that I have done a display for Parable and my ministry in NYC. It didn’t turn out too bad, if I do say so myself.
I put out a hat with ‘good deed’ coins for people to take as a reminder to do something for someone else, that no deed is too small to matter, and to be faithful in giving to missions and ministry. I also put out some fake tattoos just for fun! Hobby Lobby had some white Christmas type lights really cheap, so I strung them across the top of the display. If you squint your eyes and move your head really fast they look kind of like the skyline of NYC. Well, sort of…
We had a yummy meal for the Ms and their hosts, then off to the auditorium for the kick-off celebration. Oh how I miss the wonderful music of FBC Rogers’ choir and orchestra! The Brooklyn Tab has nothing on them, let me tell ya! There were flags from many nations presented. It was really nice.
The service was great. The Youth choir sang, the Worship choir sang, the Children’s choir sang, everyone sang, clapped and praised our wonderful God. Four people were baptized. One of them was a guy who had been prayed for during the entire time that Pastor Jaime has been at the church. After six years of prayers, this man accepted Christ as Savior. When he came up out of the water, he turned and gave Jaime the biggest bear hug. What a way to express the tremendous joy in his heart! I did pretty good about not getting emotional until they called all the Ms to the stage and at the end all the congregation stood up and clapped for us. It is soooo humbling and an honor to serve our God. It just set off floodgates from my eyes! Oh well, they were heavenly tears! I’m not ashamed of the tears, but I do make some really weird faces when trying not to cry. But I wasn’t the only one up there with wet eyes. God fills our hearts with emotion and sometimes it just overflows. I’m so thankful to feel those emotions from Him. (even if I do make funny faces) The end of the service was a time for personal commitment to God’s call for ministry and missions service locally and abroad. Dozens and dozens of people came forward to the altar to acknowledge that decision publically. Happy tears were flowing!!
After the service, our displays were open and people came by for hugs and kisses and to check out what our ministries are all about. It was so much fun to see everyone! Again, I marvel at how these kids can grow up so much when I’m not getting any older! Ha
It was such a great night. To God be all glory and honor and praise and love and respect and …
I put out a hat with ‘good deed’ coins for people to take as a reminder to do something for someone else, that no deed is too small to matter, and to be faithful in giving to missions and ministry. I also put out some fake tattoos just for fun! Hobby Lobby had some white Christmas type lights really cheap, so I strung them across the top of the display. If you squint your eyes and move your head really fast they look kind of like the skyline of NYC. Well, sort of…
We had a yummy meal for the Ms and their hosts, then off to the auditorium for the kick-off celebration. Oh how I miss the wonderful music of FBC Rogers’ choir and orchestra! The Brooklyn Tab has nothing on them, let me tell ya! There were flags from many nations presented. It was really nice.
The service was great. The Youth choir sang, the Worship choir sang, the Children’s choir sang, everyone sang, clapped and praised our wonderful God. Four people were baptized. One of them was a guy who had been prayed for during the entire time that Pastor Jaime has been at the church. After six years of prayers, this man accepted Christ as Savior. When he came up out of the water, he turned and gave Jaime the biggest bear hug. What a way to express the tremendous joy in his heart! I did pretty good about not getting emotional until they called all the Ms to the stage and at the end all the congregation stood up and clapped for us. It is soooo humbling and an honor to serve our God. It just set off floodgates from my eyes! Oh well, they were heavenly tears! I’m not ashamed of the tears, but I do make some really weird faces when trying not to cry. But I wasn’t the only one up there with wet eyes. God fills our hearts with emotion and sometimes it just overflows. I’m so thankful to feel those emotions from Him. (even if I do make funny faces) The end of the service was a time for personal commitment to God’s call for ministry and missions service locally and abroad. Dozens and dozens of people came forward to the altar to acknowledge that decision publically. Happy tears were flowing!!
After the service, our displays were open and people came by for hugs and kisses and to check out what our ministries are all about. It was so much fun to see everyone! Again, I marvel at how these kids can grow up so much when I’m not getting any older! Ha
It was such a great night. To God be all glory and honor and praise and love and respect and …
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
This is tune-up day. I tried to fit all the appointments I could into this day to get them over with. At 7:45am I had a mammogram (so early - what was I thinking?) which didn’t take long at all at that time of the morning. I had a wonderful conversation about missions with Penny, who registered me in, and then a good talk with Deanna who did the torture. I gave both ladies my card and asked them to contact me when their particular discussed ‘life event’ took place. I’ll be praying for both of these ladies.
I had time before the next appointment to stop in at Walmart. I actually got to push a full-size shopping cart around the store (not too many big carts – or carts at all – in NYC. I couldn’t believe the prices! I want to buy everything and take it back to NYC! I miss the lower cost of living here. But, I’m glad that it makes it easier for those who send me stuff.
Then I proceeded to find my way to my next Dr appointment which is in a new building in a part of town that didn’t have roads before. Driving wasn’t so bad, but these new roads made me feel disoriented. Kind of like I feel when I come up from the subway and have to get my bearings on N,S,E,or W. To make it even more of a challenge, one of the long time landmarks, Oakley Chapel Methodist Church, which always faced north, had been moved and switched to face west when the new adjacent facility was built. Now, that flipped me out for a moment. I know that my Dr.’s new office was next to the new hospital (which had also been built since I’ve been gone), but I didn’t know how to get to it either. How thankful I was to see that universal square blue sign with the big H on it. I just followed that and found the building. Inside, I saw a friend who volunteers at the info desk. How fun! Then off to the Dr.’s office. It was nice to Brenda and Dr. Hargus. Fun stories were shared, but I won’t divulge the details. A girl’s gotta have some privacy! Leaving the building I ran into another friend. It was a good morning!
After a quick bite of lunch, a stop at Hobby Lobby (a favorite store, and by the way God, thanks for putting the stuff I needed on sale this week!) and run by the bank, I visited my dentist for a free cleaning. A very nice blessing! Thank you Dr. Jeffery’s office! We got to chat a little about NYC and I gave them my card so they will remember to pray for me (and my teeth).
The evening was a fun time of a ‘henna’ party with my friend Megan who is an M in a North African country. She was speaking to, and doing henna for the highschool girl’s Bible Fellowship Class. Another friend, Maria, who is an M in Baltimore was there. It was really fun. There were even a few guys there to get some henna designs on their arms, too.A very special friend and former mentee, Brittany, played her guitar and sang a song she has written and recorded on demo for me. It was awesome! I had goose-bumps! She will always have a very special place in my heart. She is growing into quite the young lady.
I had time before the next appointment to stop in at Walmart. I actually got to push a full-size shopping cart around the store (not too many big carts – or carts at all – in NYC. I couldn’t believe the prices! I want to buy everything and take it back to NYC! I miss the lower cost of living here. But, I’m glad that it makes it easier for those who send me stuff.
Then I proceeded to find my way to my next Dr appointment which is in a new building in a part of town that didn’t have roads before. Driving wasn’t so bad, but these new roads made me feel disoriented. Kind of like I feel when I come up from the subway and have to get my bearings on N,S,E,or W. To make it even more of a challenge, one of the long time landmarks, Oakley Chapel Methodist Church, which always faced north, had been moved and switched to face west when the new adjacent facility was built. Now, that flipped me out for a moment. I know that my Dr.’s new office was next to the new hospital (which had also been built since I’ve been gone), but I didn’t know how to get to it either. How thankful I was to see that universal square blue sign with the big H on it. I just followed that and found the building. Inside, I saw a friend who volunteers at the info desk. How fun! Then off to the Dr.’s office. It was nice to Brenda and Dr. Hargus. Fun stories were shared, but I won’t divulge the details. A girl’s gotta have some privacy! Leaving the building I ran into another friend. It was a good morning!
After a quick bite of lunch, a stop at Hobby Lobby (a favorite store, and by the way God, thanks for putting the stuff I needed on sale this week!) and run by the bank, I visited my dentist for a free cleaning. A very nice blessing! Thank you Dr. Jeffery’s office! We got to chat a little about NYC and I gave them my card so they will remember to pray for me (and my teeth).
The evening was a fun time of a ‘henna’ party with my friend Megan who is an M in a North African country. She was speaking to, and doing henna for the highschool girl’s Bible Fellowship Class. Another friend, Maria, who is an M in Baltimore was there. It was really fun. There were even a few guys there to get some henna designs on their arms, too.A very special friend and former mentee, Brittany, played her guitar and sang a song she has written and recorded on demo for me. It was awesome! I had goose-bumps! She will always have a very special place in my heart. She is growing into quite the young lady.
Monday, March 2, 2009
I arrived at my home church (FBC Rogers) with video cam in hand. It was awesome to catch people’s expressions when they realized it was me. It’s been well over a year since I have seen most of them, and the very short gray hair has changed my appearance. Needless to say, there were tons of hugs all day.
My friend Kellie and I went to the health food store for a quick lunch and some food shopping. Thank you to my friends who gave me some cash for the food! As much as I like this store, this town could really use a Whole Foods store!
I had dinner with my friends the Browns. They always make me feel like family. They were going out of town for a few days and insisted that I borrow one of their cars. Actually, they insisted that if I didn’t use the car, I would be stealing their blessing. So, after reminding them that I have only driven 3 times in the last 2 years, I set off with my wheels. There were no mishaps on the way back to Rogers. Thank you God for seriously being my co-pilot!
My friend Kellie and I went to the health food store for a quick lunch and some food shopping. Thank you to my friends who gave me some cash for the food! As much as I like this store, this town could really use a Whole Foods store!
I had dinner with my friends the Browns. They always make me feel like family. They were going out of town for a few days and insisted that I borrow one of their cars. Actually, they insisted that if I didn’t use the car, I would be stealing their blessing. So, after reminding them that I have only driven 3 times in the last 2 years, I set off with my wheels. There were no mishaps on the way back to Rogers. Thank you God for seriously being my co-pilot!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Left my apartment at 7:20am by shuttle van to the airport. The driver was not too crazy, but he drove a little jerk-y, so I was glad I took my ginger pills to ward off motion sickness. I got to the airport a couple of hours early, so I parked myself at the food court with a juice and did some Bible study.
As the plane took off, it seemed that everyone was quiet, but not too tense. However, once we were airborne without bird attacks, everyone seemed to start chatting. I think the ‘miracle on the Hudson’ was on our minds just a little bit…After a brief layover in Dallas, I made it to NW Arkansas. Looking down at the landscape and all the hundreds of chicken houses, I knew I was ‘home’. The Janes family picked me up at the airport and I couldn’t believe how much the kids have grown. Have I really been gone that long? I was safely deposited at Nana Ruth’s house and after dinner and a long chat, snuggled in to bed tried to sleep in this quiet place. I had brought my ‘noise machine’ with me just in case, and used it to sleep by.
As the plane took off, it seemed that everyone was quiet, but not too tense. However, once we were airborne without bird attacks, everyone seemed to start chatting. I think the ‘miracle on the Hudson’ was on our minds just a little bit…After a brief layover in Dallas, I made it to NW Arkansas. Looking down at the landscape and all the hundreds of chicken houses, I knew I was ‘home’. The Janes family picked me up at the airport and I couldn’t believe how much the kids have grown. Have I really been gone that long? I was safely deposited at Nana Ruth’s house and after dinner and a long chat, snuggled in to bed tried to sleep in this quiet place. I had brought my ‘noise machine’ with me just in case, and used it to sleep by.
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