Money Mike

My cell phone recently had an unfortunate drowning a few weeks ago in the Atlantic Ocean.

In case you were wondering where my new cellular device was going to be purchased, we found a used one on craigslist. After picking it up from the seller, Matt tells me that it was "only slightly sketchy."

The homescreen, complete with photo and title, is attached for your convenience. I scrolled through the phone to see who "Money Mike" likes to chat with. Apparently he likes to chat with lots of ladies, the likes of which are named "LilSis" (wonder if this is code for someone else?), "Margo," "Unnamed Contact" (now that's not obvious or anything), "Dorian," "Channy", "Lady 18" (which begs the question, who are ladies 1-17?), "U", and "Wifey" (which begs another more important question- does she know about all the other ladies in Money Mike's contact list? Probably not...)

Thought yall would get a kick out of my new ghetto phone :)
Hope to get it activated today.

Ans (a.k.a. "Lady 19")

Open the Floodgates

This past weekend, Nashville was hit with historic amounts of rain. That rain caused flooding in many of the low-lying areas, and some areas just got hit with flash floods and didn't have time to react.

It's crazy because you can't even tell it rained at our house. My flowers perked up a little from all the water, but that's about it. The area we live and work in is almost completely unaffected. I'm amazed at God's watch over us and our home. Then, there are some people who lost everything just a few miles away from us. Some even died on the road because they were swept away in their cars and could not escape. The Opryland hotel sustained billions of dollars worth of damage. The historic Grand Ole Opry is destroyed. That's just the start of it.

Matt & I met up with some friends last night to help out the family of a woman with MS. They were cleaning out her home which had been flooded with at least 3 feet of water. It was gross. It smelled terrible. And there was plenty of stuff to fill so many Glad bags to the brim- this woman must have a QVC frequent buyer card.

Yet here's what I loved about it:
-That our friends were turned away at their originally intended stop because they already had enough help, and they didn't stop there. They walked door to door, knocking and asking if there was any way they could help. And finally, they came to a home that said 'yes.'
-That while we were working there, a random guy walked by, telling us that Texas Roadhouse was providing free meals up at the neighborhood's club house. Hundreds of free meals. That makes my heart smile.
-That a 21 year old boy would spend his 21st birthday cleaning up his relative's flooded home

This all taught me something. Just showing up can simply be an act of service in and of itself. You show up, not necessarily knowing all the details, but expecting God to show up and point you in the right direction. Nashville has a long way to go in its efforts to clean up and rebuild, but we're fortunate in that our government, water supply, and grocery stores are all still intact. More importantly, our spirit is still alive and well and that is something to celebrate.

"Boldness" I Asked, and Boldness You Did Give

A LETTER SENT TO MY BSF AREA ADVISOR:


Hi Shirley,

It was so wonderful to hear from you and the other HQ staff this past weekend at the Birmingham retreat! I enjoyed each person's testimony and the wonderful teaching we heard.
I wanted to share a story with you about how God answered the prayer of my Lunch Group for me on Saturday. This is a long email, and is even a shortened version of the entire conversation, but I hope you and the HQ staff will be encouraged by it.

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Saturday, at the "Special Needs Diet" table (I'm a vegetarian), I was surrounded by a group of women I didn't know. Quite frankly, I wasn't in the mood to get to know them. I asked God to help me overcome my tiredness and help me engage in conversation with them. I shared that I was concerned for some people I love deeply who are not believers, and told them that what I really needed was boldness. I needed sensitivity to the Holy Spirit to know what to say and when to say it, and boldness to share what he told me no matter the circumstance... and not just with my family- but boldness in every situation I'm presented with. The woman across the table from me reached over and touched my arm. She looked me straight in the eye and said, "I'm praying for boldness for you. That's what you need."


Coming back from the retreat was hectic. I realized on Sunday that I had completed the next week's lesson (the wrong one), and was trying to figure out how I'd finish the correct one for our make-up leaders' meeting on Monday (last night). Other unavoidable tasks got in the way. "Lord, how am I going to finish this?" I decided I'd do my lesson during my lunch hour at work on Monday. Since I had missed work on Friday, I had much to catch up on yesterday at the office. My lunch "hour" quickly became scarfing down some food at my desk while working. "OK, God, you know my need for time, and you know my heart, that I want to complete this lesson. Please show me how to get it done." I decided to hit up Starbucks after work (something I rarely, if ever, do) to get a coffee to help me stay awake, and would hunker down to complete my lesson there before heading to leaders' meeting.

I ordered my coffee, sat down with my lesson ready to go, and opened my Bible to John 17. Then, I noticed a man lingering around the shop. I knew he'd be coming over to me. And he did. He asked if he could sit down, and I told him he could. He asked if I was an angel (??). I laughed and said "No, I'm just a human, but I do worship the Living God." He noted that I had my Bible open and asked if I was a college student. I said, "No, I'm just a person who believes in Him and studies His Word. I'll share with you what I'm learning if you'd like."

I began to share with him about Jesus' love for him and His ministry in the book of John, and was met with the agony of a very angry, bitter man who said he'd told God to "go to hell because if He's so great then why aint He helping me out?" I found out the man was homeless, jobless, womanless (which I told him was probably a gift! :) and hopeless. I told him God would forgive him for saying that if he truly repented and meant it. He said if he didn't think he'd go to jail for it, he'd just "take everyone out." Instead of being afraid, I asked what good that would do to destroy God's creation? He said "People have turned their back on me, and I'd feel vindicated." I shared with him what true vindication is- when God throws Satan and his army into the lake of fire after destroying them on the spot as they surround the New Jerusalem. Taking the lives of other people would only drive him further into despair, plus God is the only one who will ultimately get vindication, so which side would he rather be on? (I should note that I don't really think he was a threat to society, especially since he would not have the resources for that.... he's just a guy with a lot of hurt and a chip on his shoulder and no other apparent way to deal with it.)

I shared with him about the Holy Spirit. He said, "That Holy Spirit seems like a pretty good dude, but he don't do 'jack' for me." He had obviously heard the Gospel before, and said he did pray, but "God never answered" his prayers. I told him God always answers prayer, either with "yes, no, or not right now." I asked how he was praying, and learned that he wanted "instant gratification." I laughed and said we'd never get that, as long as our prayers are focused on us.

"How often do you come in here?" I asked him. "Hardly ever," he said. He had just come in to get a cup of water (which I appreciate that Starbucks gave to him!)
I said, "At the end of time, every non-believer will be reminded of every opportunity he or she had to accept Jesus Christ. I hope you can see that our meeting here was no accident- this was a divine appointment by God, and Jesus is asking you to receive him and follow him." The man, named "Van", asked me, "So, what if somebody does drugs or drinks alcohol or smokes cigarettes?"
I told him that God is more concerned with our heart, and sanctifies followers over a period of time so that our desires become His, and we don't care for those things any more.

(Notice how the Revelation teaching is peppered throughout our conversation- is that divine or what!)

I encouraged "Van" to ask God to reveal Himself to him, instead of praying for what he thought he wanted or needed. I said even if he never got another home, job, or woman, he could still have all the riches in heaven if he would just believe in Jesus Christ and choose to follow him. An hour later, it was time to leave for BSF, so I told him my husband and I would be praying for him.

I got in my car and said, "God, what just happened?!" And my Lord reminded me... "You asked me for boldness, and I just gave you the opportunity to use it." I burst into tears at His faithfulness in answering prayer. I can't think of a more seemingly uncomfortable situation for me- sitting in a crowded coffee shop with a homeless man who was cursing God's name (rather loudly), and being stared at by the people who overheard our conversation. I didn't care. He made me bold.

I showed up at leader's meeting without having completed this week's discussion questions (sorry, Headquarters!), but there are just some things that God has to teach us in His own way. I truly believe that every obstacle I encountered was part of God's plan to have me meet that man yesterday. It was not God's will that Van accept Jesus yesterday, but I pray that he will soon.
Our Lord is good, He is holy, and He is worthy of all our praise.
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Thank you for the sound teaching we received on the book of Revelation last weekend, and thank you for carrying on the ministry of BSF. May God continue to bless it!

Ansley Kynes
Nashville Evening Womens' CL

Seamless

Have you ever thought about the Biblical directive "and the two shall become one?" I've always thought it was kinda weird. How can two separate people be "one"? Does that mean if I get a tattoo my husband will also technically have a tattoo? There are some pretty obvious ways in which oneness takes place (duh), but it seems God means something so much deeper than that.

I think the Lord desires for a husband and wife to think like one another, to make decisions together seamlessly and with HIM as our simultaneous desire and ultimate aim. It makes sense, to think of it that way. That Matt & I have been united together in marriage, in Christ. Our purpose is Him, our glue is Him, our reason is Him... so we naturally will begin to merge into doing things solely for God's glory.

So with that in mind, here's a little anecdote from our morning. Matt & I just got back last night from a weekend trip to meet our new nephew (more on that later). We left for work/school this morning, and just as I was about to pull off our little street on to the main road I asked "Do you have everything you need? Your I.D. badge?" This may not seem like a big deal, and it's really not, but it's abnormal for me to ask him that. Matt's a grown up- he knows what he needs to bring with him for the day, and he doesn't need me to remind him to grab his lunch bag and tie his shoe laces and comb his hairs. But this morning, I had a sense that we were both rushed getting out the door, so maybe that's what caused me to think, "that would be really inconvenient for him to get all the way to the hospital this morning and have to turn around because he forgot his I.D. badge." As it turns out, he had left his hospital access card on the kitchen table.

Small potatoes, I realize, but I think it's an example of how the Holy Spirit brings us together in marriage, how he causes us to think like, and for, the other person, and how He melds us and molds us into Christ's image. (I have to follow this up by saying that he texted me a few minutes later asking if I would run home and bring his white coat to him during lunch. So I guess I didn't think of everything :) )

I look forward to growing closer to Matt, to where we fit together and act as one, like a seamless tapestry woven together by time and Christ.

Golfball-sized brain

This is Rudy. Rudy loves to go outside, because he was a barn cat before we got him. When he's inside, he pines for the great outdoors. He meows longingly for whatever may lay on the other side of the door. If only he had opposable thumbs!

Ruds also has what Matt & I like to call a "golfball-sized brain." Which means that he quickly forgets that there is SNOW on the ground outside right now. And that going outside will require that he walk on the white powdery coldness. He doesn't seem to mind the snow at first- in fact he becomes quite the frisky little fellow. To him, it's just one giant litter box.

He paws.




He plays.



He poses.



...And then it hits him. He's cold. Freezing cold. And he begs to come inside again... must be tough having a golf ball for a brain.

Living in a Glorified Body

Today is February 9th. An un-extraordinary, ordinary day by most accounts. In my heart, though, it's a special day. My Dad would've turned 62 today, if he were still alive (that's him in the pic).

It's not a coincidence that we're studying John 13 this week in BSF. Here's an excerpt:

36Simon Peter asked him, "Lord, where are you going?"
Jesus replied, "Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later."

In the first part of his response, Christ is referring to his death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven over 2000 years ago. But my favorite part comes after the comma. He promises "you will follow later"- as in, "don't worry, you will never be separated from me." Not only that, Jesus promises that He Himself will come back for his, to take us into heaven where there will be no more disease, no more suffering, no more tears...

I'm not sure how birthdays work in heaven, but today I imagined Dad there, in his glorified body, just blameless and beautiful before the Lord. And he's having one heck of a birthday party.