ROAD TRIP tomorrow!!!  Whoo-hoo.  Cari and I head out early in the morning for our road trip to Minnesota. Ok – it’s a working road trip but nevertheless, we are going to have a grand time getting out of town and hitting the open highway. I’m really pumped.  We have good company, good music, good snacks and a very flexible schedule.  Plus Cari has made some fun plans for Thursday night up in Minneapolis.  I’m sure I’ll post some road trip photos when I return this weekend so you can share in our adventures.  I’m expecting many, many unexpected blessings!

Today was LONG – an all day planning retreat with the pastoral team.  The last three days have been so crazy with constant appointments, projects and assignments as I prepare to be away from work for over a week. (i am on vacation next week.)  I haven’t made the time to cherish my unexpected blessings much.  Sunday was definitely a wonderful blessing through Youth Sunday!  I love my youth and they did an amazing job leading us to the feet of God.  Monday I was blessed very unexpectedly as plans for the Minnesota mission experience fell into place with nothing but the grace of God to explain it.  Tonight I was blessed by my youth here for c-groups.  BOB just cracks me up.  Okay this will sound a little irresponsible but Bob was setting his clothes on fire.  You had to be there cause it honestly was stinkin’ hilarious.  Until one point when the flames kept on going up his sleeve.  Then I had an excuse to beat the tar out of him as I put the flames out.  Too funny (no youth were hurt in the making of this moment).  Bobadinski is a spaz just like me and we have the best pointless conversations. 

I haven’t had much time to be quiet within for a few days so I am very much missing that time of connecting with myself. I feel a little disoriented and chaotic without my time to process life, events, feelings, revelations, etc.  I very much need that in order to really know how I’m feeling or what I’m thinking.  I think I’ll have some time to do that as Cari and I journey the next few days. I will definitely make time for that next week.

Thanks for prayers for my dad.  He has bronchitis but they gave him some great drugs and he is on the slow mend. 

Have a great week and I’ll be back to blogging this weekend!

Peace – Melissa

Don’t have time to write much tonight but found this quote that I find incredibly rich and challenging.  Wanted to share it with everyone.

Mostly we think of people with great authority as higher up, far away, hard to reach. But spiritual authority comes from compassion and emerges from deep inner solidarity with those who are "subject" to authority. The one who is fully like us, who deeply understands our joys and pains or hopes and desires, and who is willing and able to walk with us, that is the one to whom we gladly give authority and whose "subjects" we are willing to be.

It is the compassionate authority that empowers, encourages, calls forth hidden gifts, and enables great things to happen. True spiritual authorities are located in the point of an upside-down triangle, supporting and holding into the light everyone they offer their leadership to.

Henri Nouwen

Peace – Melissa