I’m in the great city of Hollister, MO, for a few days.  Hollister is just south of Branson and I’m actually on the campus of College of the Ozarks for a clergy leadership conference.  We are in session pretty much all day – 8 am to 9 pm – with breaks for meals and a few short breaks here and there.  It is long but very good.  Right now I’m in the computer lab with a bunch of college students who are busy with papers and such.  How glad I am not to be them!!!

Tonight’s session was wonderful and so inspiring.  When I was here in October, I was really struggling with life and ministry and balancing it all.  I’m stronger now and have healed from some things and so it is interesting to come back to this place and these individuals and remember those feelings when I was here last.  It is a reminder of how much life changes in a short period of time but it only seems short  on the backside, not the frontside.  Perspective . . .  it makes such a difference in life.

Much of our conversation here is exciting and affirming for me in my call to the ministry.  It affirms my calling and my passion for ministry.  Getting away from life to remember and renew these things is important – for everyone.  Whether renewing a love for a careeer or a love for a spouse or whatever.  Sometimes we need to step out from life to really appreciate where we are at and what we have and to gain wisdom on where we want to go next.

I was blessed today from some readings in John 14, 15 and 16 as I reflected on the Friend that came to be with us after Jesus ascended to Heaven.  Our Friend, the Spirit of Truth – the Holy Spirit – who was sent to be with us, to assure us that we are not orphaned, to make plain to us and remind us what God has said, to expose to all the sin of our lives . .  the Advocate, our Friend who will always be with us.   What encouraging words to read …  we are not alone.  We have the living Spirit of Christ with us in this world.  The Holy Spirit is the living presence of Christ in the world.  And the Spirit invites us to be a part of that presence as well.  What a humbling and amazing dance to be invited to. In the midst of life, we things overwhelm and when we feel alone, it is good to remember John 14 – we are not alone.  Our great Friend will also be with us and will guide us in the ways of God. How thankful I am for that promise.

Tonight in our session, one of the questions that was asked of us was "Where did we see God this past week?"  For me, I saw God . . .

… in my living room on Monday night with a friend who needs God’s peace to reappear in her life.
… in my basement on Tuesday night with the youth gathered for c-group.
… on Thursday afternoon as I chased my nephew around the mall.
… on Thursday afternoon as I listened to one of my youth share about her journey of faith;
… on Thursday night with CG friends playing games together, getting to know one another and simply enjoying each other company.
… on Friday night as I was raking leaves in the dark and praying through with God some things in my life I just don’t understand … but in the end, being reassured that God heard me and will do what is best for me.
… on Saturday morning as we celebrated the upcoming arrival of a new life and a new hope for my friends, Cari and Mike.
… on Saturday night as CG members worshipped together at MOSAIC, shared reflections on our common failures to trust God, and enjoyed some friendship time.
… on Sunday morning sitting with a row of CG family that have found their way to FBC.
… on Sunday afternoon as I played with my handsome nephew, Blake, and enjoyed time with my beloved family.

I see God in relationships.  You see – Love is at the heart of relationships.  And God is love.   And I learned in Algebra in 9th grade that if A + B = C, then . . .   (yes!  Finally – Algebra comes in handy….  

Peace and LOVE to each of you -
Melissa

This week has been one of those weeks where I have to work hard to pack it all in!  It truly has been non-stop both at work and outside of work (which in most ways was work related.)   I’m looking forward to slowing down Sunday afternoon and evening.  It has been a good week with some great steps forward in several areas.

Thursday night was our CG monthly hangout night and we had some new or less-seen faces show up for a fun night of games and conversation.  Some of us stayed until 12:30 am playing games and talking.  It is so wonderful to see relationships growing among people in our group and new faces coming in.  It is slow and intentional work to build these kinds of friendships but it is so important and something that is an extension of God. God has taught me so much in recent years about the importance of community.   Tonight was Mosaic  – our worship gathering and it was another good evening of worship together and some continued fellowship.  We’ve been using a video series titled "Nooma" and the messages shared by the pastor, Rob Bell, are so rich and challenging.  Tonight was  a great lesson on how we struggle to really trust that God knows best for us.  We get frustrated, even angry when God fails to give us something we think we need or really want – just like when our parents didn’t get us that one toy we wanted when we were younger.  Sometimes they said "no" because they knew something we didn’t know – that we didn’t need it or that it would make things worse for us or simply because they had a different plan.  God has that same perspective but we forget to trust or refuse to.  And Rob Bell weaves it to a key point – the question really is "Do we believe that God is good?  Always?"  Until we answer that question, we can’t really move forward.  Because if we believe that God is always good, then why wouldn’t we trust Him with our lives?  our futures?   We had some great discussion related to this.  It was especially a good topic for single adults who sometimes question why they are still single.  Living life frustrated and questioning why somethign has or hasn’t happened in your life is not living with faith that God is good and will keep His promise.  So . . it isn’t any eaiser but it was a good reminder that God truly has our best interest at heart and will fulfill the promise of Jeremiah 29:11-14 (MSG):

God says, "I know what I’m doing.  I have it all planned out – plans to take care of you, not abandon you, plans to give you the future you hope for.  When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I’ll listen.  When you come looking for me, you’ll find me.  Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I’ll make sure you won’t be disappointed."

Tonight is the high school’s winter sports dance and the theme is the 80s.  So this afternoon I helped a couple of my freshmen boys put together some awesome 80s outfits from clothing at the Goodwill store.  It was a walk down memory lane thinking about the fashion styles.  I kept thinking of the guys I liked in my high school years and what they wore.  We ended up finding them some nice white-washed jeans that tapered in the leg; pasteled collared polo shirts and pasteled sweaters that they could wear and then tie around their shoulders.  So 80s…  what fun!  We had absolutely no style back then.