Life in Mississippi: A Quick Update

I realized that I haven't really updated about what all is going on in my life lately. Here's a few updates.

1. I don't live in a dorm anymore! Tory and Colleen, two of my best friends from Indiana, moved down here with me. We have an apartment in Richland, a suburb of Jackson. They both are going to local Christian undergraduate schools. Our apartment rocks my socks off! It's basically beautiful--kind of feels like a condo. I'm not sure how we afford it. It's nice to not be doing the whole dorm life thing anymore. Especially after living in a townhouse my senior year of college, it was kind of difficult to handle a dorm again. Plus, dorm life mixed with graduate school just isn't as nice of a mix anyway. Anyway, I'm super excited to be in our apartment.

2. I still work at that buffet place. That's right, I still work at Hamil's restaurant. I like working there a lot. It's a good atmosphere, usually :), and I enjoy my job. I've actually upped my hours a little bit for this school year compared to last. I'm feeling the effects of that already academically, but I'm determined to make it work. As to Starbucks, I quit at the beginning of this month. It wasn't quite working out for several reasons.

3. I'm more involved with teenagers again. I can't stay away from adolescents! haha. I'm co-leading the Wednesday night youth program at Olde Towne Community Church. I love these students. The balancing act of time is a challenge, but I love spending time with them and pouring into them along with teaching them. They're great!

4. I'm taking some cool classes. The schedule this semester consists of Learning Styles and Taxonomy with Luman--an introductory class to the Teaching concentration, Pentateuch with Oswalt, Introduction and History of the New Testament with Cockerill, and Hebrew for Exegesis with Oswalt. Also, with the new curriculum I'm enrolled in a 1/2 hour course per semester call Cumulative Formation Practice--which basically involves required material for personal devos that the whole seminary community is working through together plus a small group meeting once every three weeks.

5. I'll be here an extra six months. This is a tough one for me to just throw out there, but I've decided God has more for me in my "seminary/Mississippi" experience than just class work all the time. A lot of factors play into this, but it will take me 3.5 years to finish instead of just 3. I'm telling myself I'm ok with that--and I need to be because I feel like it's what God wants.

6. I'm praying about New Zealand. My eyes were recently opened to a great need among adolescents in New Zealand. I'm seriously praying about spending some time there, possibly with Global Partners, after seminary.

There's my update for the semester!

Seeds Remain Dormant For a Long Time Sometimes...

This morning, I wanted to write an encouragement note to everyone struggling to live a godly life and point the people around them to Christ. Sometimes it is discouraging... especially when people consistently want nothing to do with Jesus Christ. The looks and comments sometimes hurt us deeply, "Jesus freak..." "Religious nut!!" And other times... haha... you just want to scream because people don't get it at all! I remember one girl in junior high who asked me, "Why do you put yourself through all this?!" Because I love you--that's why. I put myself through this because Christ's love has totally transformed my life, and now His love overflows through me to you. I'm totally willing to be persecuted by you, FOR YOU.

Anyway, I suppose I should get to what prompted this encouragement note. In the past few years, I've been shocked by the correspondence I've had with some distant friends from high school. One friend contacted me about a year and a half ago. I had not heard a thing from him since graduation. He contacted me on facebook to let me know he had given his life to Christ. He let me know some of what God was doing in his life, and explained that he just knew I would want to know. Wow. Then, just this week, another old friend I have not heard from in almost six years contacted me--to let me know that he is searching for answers and truth. He wanted to be able to ask me some questions.

I'm so overwhelmed by all this for two reasons. One, I prayed for both of these people in junior high and high school. I could raid my old prayer journals and find their names. Second, neither of them showed any real interest while we were in school. They didn't ask me questions--I just tried to give them answers. Now one has found the Answer, and the other intentionally sought me out to start asking questions. Third, on a lighter note, both of these people found me on Facebook. How cool is it that Facebook can be a ministry tool?! :)

We are starting a series with the students at Olde Towne Community Church this Wednesday night about being able to give an answer for our faith--and why that is so necessary. It IS NECESSARY. And not only should we be able to give an answer, but our lives of love should be a type of answer in themselves. Our world needs and hungers for the truth of Jesus Christ. Don't be discouraged if it seems your seeds fall on dry ground! Keep planting! Don't give up! Six years from now, you may have a shocking and uplifting encounter. Seeds remain dormant for a long time sometimes... and they still can take root! Praise God who waters the seed!

Hear, O Israel

In my Hebrew class over the past three semesters, we've been reciting the Shema in Hebrew before class every week. To be totally honest, I hadn't actually memorized it (until recently) and would only mumble along with the rest of the class while I hunted for my printed copy in my notes. For some reason, however, this week I was spending time with the Lord and in the Word, and all that changed. I read the Shema in an English translation ("Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength"). After reading it, somehow the Shema in Hebrew began running over and over in my mind and continued to throughout the day and the rest of the week. It's been an incredible experience for me... as I pray this ancient creed in its original tongue throughout my daily routine.

I've begun to re-think the creed itself as a result. None of these insights are my own--they've all been acquired through classes and professors at WBS--but I thought I would share them as they have become more personal to me. I used to wonder at the variety of English translations of this passage in the "all of your_________" statements. I always thought it would be interesting to study the original, and interesting doesn't even cover it. The first word, often translated "heart," actually can mean heart, mind, and will in Hebrew. It describes the emotive and decision-making faculties of a person. While it is usually not the best exegesis to force a word to mean all of its possibilities at once in a given context, I consider this context to be one of trying to express the most holistic concept possible. Therefore, I don't think it is amiss to read just this first phrase as "Love the LORD your God with all your heart/mind/will." That's a lot in just one of the three phrases! Already it covers almost all we are able to convey in the English translation. The second word, often translated "soul," is the word used in Genesis when it says that God breathed into Adam and he became a living _________. The word itself actually conveys life or being itself--Adam became a living soul, a living life, a living being, a living person. So now we're to, "Love the LORD your God with all your heart/mind/will, with all your life/being/person..." Finally, the last phrase really blows my mind. The basic meaning is "with all your very much." The concept being communicated is along the lines of--if I've left anything out, love God with that too as much as you can! In conclusion, I've been challenged this week by the Hebrew equivalent of the following running through my mind: "Hear, O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one! Love the LORD your God with all your heart, mind, and will, with all your life, being, and person, and with all your everything and anything you've got!" Wow... I long to love God that much in all my life.