Time for books...Yes

Yesterday afternoon I spent a few hours at Ada Hayden Lake in North Ames. It is only about a 20-25 minute bike ride from my house. It was a beautiful afternoon of warm sunshine, praying, reading my Bible, and journaling.



I also started reading The Grace and Truth Paradox by Randy Alcorn. It is good thus far. I'll post some thoughts on it once I'm finished.

The One and Only...

The One and Only...is Jesus.

I am going to get up on my soapbox for a moment.

Sometimes I think churches forget what is most important; they lose sight of Jesus.

For the past two weeks I have been visiting another church in Ames that I had heard a lot about. Today during the time of teaching, I just wanted to stand up and shout "Jesus!" I felt like they were too busy trying to make me smart and promote their views that they completely forgot to talk about Jesus. Yes, I agree with some of their ideas, but are we trying to formulate new ideas or KNOW Jesus? I don't just want to get "smart." I want to love Jesus in such a way that others want to love Him too.

So, what did I learn today? I was convicted that I too sometimes forget to proclaim the Name of Jesus as the forefront of all I do. Jesus, forgive me and may I speak Your Name clearly before others.

Time for books

Right now I wish I could take a few weeks to read some of the books that have been sitting on my shelves for way too long waiting to be read. It seems like the list of books I want to read is ever growing. Here are a few of those on my shelves that I am looking forward to reading (soon).

The Grace and Truth Paradox by Randy Alcorn
Experiencing the Holy Spirit by Andrew Murray
The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis
The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence
Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Normal Christian Life by Watchman Nee
The Math Gene by Keith Devlin
The Language of God by Francis S. Collins
Get Out of that Pit by Beth Moore
The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel
The Saving Life of Christ by Major W. Ian Thomas

Perhaps I will go to the park and read for a few hours today...

Balance

This semester I am working on BALANCE. It can be pretty difficult to balance the demands of school and research with the rest of life. I am usually good about staying involved in at least one Bible study during the week, my dinner club, and exercising. So it is not so much the activities that I want to balance but my feelings.

I don't want to feel so overwhelmed by school and research. There is always so much to be accomplished, but somehow it gets done. I want to be better about separating myself from my daily work when I am not actually working on it. So this is the challenge for the semester...only time will tell how it plays out.

I am asking the Lord to grant me great time with Him where I am released for the demands and duties of my day. My God is the One who holds my life (and the whole world for that matter) in perfect balance. Praise be to Him.

Jubilee Run

While I was at home, we celebrated my Mom's 50th birthday. We honored and celebrated her by putting on a Jubilee Run. The name for the run comes from the Bible where every 50 years the Isrealites were to have a time of renewal, restoration, and celebration. We invited 50 of her girl friends to join us for a 5k run. It was a wonderful time of celebration, fun, and laughter.

The Lord before me

This summer my women's Bible study has been reading through parts of the book of Psalms in the Bible. One of the Psalms that we read tonight was Psalm 16. There were a few things that really struck me. I so love how the Lord is personal and knows what my heart needs to hear. He is good!

In all that I do, I want to "set the Lord always before me." The Lord counsels me, instructs me, and will not abandon me. Thus I can be glad, rejoice, rest secure, and be filled with joy.

Psalm 16
Keep me safe, O God,
for in you I take refuge.

I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing."

As for the saints who are in the land,
they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight.

The sorrows of those will increase
who run after other gods.
I will not pour out their libations of blood
or take up their names on my lips.

LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.

I will praise the LORD, who counsels me;
even at night my heart instructs me.

I have set the LORD always before me.
Because he is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.

Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will you let your Holy One see decay.

You have made known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.

Lord, may You receive glory, honor, and praise in all that I do this semester and always.

School & Prayer Request

Today started another semester. It amazes me that I am starting my third year of grad school. On the one hand it feels like I just got here and yet sometimes I think that I have been here forever.

My goal for this semester, other than my three courses and current research projects, is to figure out my dissertation research topic. This is a HUGE prayer request. I ask you to pray that I will be able to find a topic in which I am interested, a professor with whom I can easily work and who will guide me in my studies, and a way to be funded through this project. Ideally I would like to be working on a project that is similar to what I hope to do long term. My interests are in survey statistics with application in a social, education, or health field.

Family

This morning I had a conversation with my roommate Emily about family. I was telling her that I was feeling homesick and that I felt funny to be 25, starting my third year of grad school and being so homesick. Throughout our discussion I made a few realizations. I realize that my feelings of homesickness show how much I love my family, how important family is to me, and how much I long for family.

Our discussion also included our desires to have our own families. We both desire to be married and have children of our own. We know that the Lord has created us with these desires and that one day we will 'leave' our families (our parents) and begin new families.

I guess this post doesn't really say much other than I am okay with my feelings of homesickness. God has given me strong feelings and love for family and that is perfectly fine. So for now, I am trying to patiently wait for family.

Back in Ames

I always have such a hard time coming back to Ames. I love the time that I get to spend with my family and hate to leave them. Ames is becoming more like home, but it is not home.

FEAR. This is what I have dealt with the past two times that I have left AZ and returned to Ames. I spent a week in AZ in May for Carina's graduation and during this time my Aunt Pat passed away. This was a hard time and continues to be difficult. I struggled leaving my family and coming back to Ames. I feared that something would happen to them. While I was just home, a dear friend was in the Grand Canyon when the dam broke and a flash flood ensued. (She made it out unharmed. Praise the Lord!) Again I deal with fear.

I must continually remind myself that God is the One with strength and protection. He is the One who watches over my family and friends no matter where I am. I am incapable of always protecting others. I must let go of my fears and truth in the Lord.

Pictures

Family Vacation

My family is leaving in about 30 minutes to head to my Grandparent's cabin in North Arizona for the weekend. We are planning on hiking Mt Humphreys, hanging out, laughing, and having fun. I am looking forward to a great weekend of fun and relaxation. Perhaps there will be pictures next week.

Home

Love
Laughter
Freedom
Early morning runs
Rest
Peace
Fun
Late night talks
Hugs
Comfort

These are some of the things that I most enjoy about being home. I love to be with my family. I am looking forward to spending the next two weeks with them and making many memories.

More stories and fun to come...

Leave of absence

Forgive my absence over the past few days. I am currently sitting in the Denver airport on my way home! (To AZ that is) I have been in Denver since Saturday at the Joint Statistical Meetings. I have not had access to the internet since I left Ames.

I realized how much I like living in small town Ames IA. When I arrived in Denver on Saturday, none of my friends had arrived yet. I was walking around downtown Denver and I was a bit frightened. When I am in Ames, I typically feel safe wherever I go. I like living in the little town that isn't overcrowded, I can get everywhere on my bike, and I see people all over that I know.

I also realized that I do love statistics. I was able to give a presentation on my current research, attend a continuing education short course, and develop an interest in some new areas of research. It is a little overwhelming to be around over 5,000 statisticians for 5 days.

But, now I am on my way home to AZ and I am very excited!