GR life begins again

Howdy.

My online classes started on Tuesday. It looks like it's going to be a lot of work, but so far no sign of big papers. I'm taking research writing at the CC, so that is going to be a big enough source of large papers. If you could continue to pray for my time management, I would appreciate it. It's not something that I am naturally good at, so it will take some work.

Last week was my "fun week" before I headed off to GR for school. Unfortunately, I was really down about some stuff right when the week started, and it sort of made the week less exciting. Thursday was a real pick-me-up, though, because I got to catch up with some old friends who had great reports of their walk with the Lord.

Now, I begin the process of searching for a church to attend in GR. I found what seems to be a nice Wesleyan church right down the road that I am going to check out. One of the things that I am looking for is proximity. I really want to find a church that is really close to where I am living. Driving 30 minutes or more to church is lame. Obviously, the church must have sound doctrine. I am also looking for a church that is abnormal. Normality is overrated. There are lots of things that could qualify for this. Maybe it's multicultural, maybe it's a house church, maybe they are just willing to think way outside the box when it comes to ministry, or maybe their worship service isn't your standard 3 songs, meet and greet, offering, sermon, another song to close and then leave.
I'm not going to leave a church because I'm not being "fed" adequately by the pastor, if I felt that way I would just listen to sermons from John Piper online. I'm looking for a church where I can connect, love people, be loved by people, and serve along side loving people in ministry.

Putting my face in the dirt

I was driving home from a wedding rehearsal tonight and in the process I listened to two separate sermons on the radio. They were from two different pastors, one out of the book of Job and one out of Romans. They had a common theme, and one that I needed to be reminded of again.

What is our view of God? No, he is not here to help us live a better life in 10 easy steps. Life is not about us and what we can get out of it. Life is about God. God is immeasurably greater than us, almighty, most holy. Why do I not often find myself face down in the dirt, prostrate, bowing down to God's reverence. Not metaphorically, not just a state of mind, but physically in the dirt. How often do we realize our state of depravity and break down, tears running down our faces, unable to do anything but proclaim God's majesty? Too often I take God's grace for granted as I continue to cut corners and sin here and there (it seems ok, because they're not the "big" sins). I should fall flat on my face in tears of repentance every time I disobey the Lord in the small things. We serve a God far greater than any of us can imagine, yet we neglect to give him the praise he deserves.

This thought began earlier this summer when a friend, in tears, opened up to me that this is where he is. As we sat and talked in a mosquito infested swamp for two hours, He said that even the mosquitoes obeyed God's command, yet we cannot. We do not even deserve to kill the mosquitoes biting us right now, because they obey God and we don't. Thanks friend; I thought I was there to help you in that moment, but you don't realize how much you changed my life.