My heart is beating a little faster as I type this post. Some of you know that I have been thinking about going to Israel/Palestine for awhile now, and I am announcing today that it is official. I am going!
I am going with two of my friends from Iliff, Kevin and Greta, and we are going as part of a delegation with Christian Peacemakers Team. Their motto is "Getting in the way" and they seek to provide a nonviolent alternative to war and other forms of lethal inter-group conflict. The brochure I received says this about the role of delegation members: "Delegation members provide encouragement for individuals and communities experiencing violence, challenge violations of human rights and promote active nonviolence as a means of settling disputes."
The trip is scheduled for July 21-August 3. I don't have a lot of trip details, but I know we will spend the first few days meeting with representatives from Israeli and Palestinian groups in Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Later in the delegation, we will spend time documenting human rights conditions, taking part in street patrols, and meeting with residents and leaders in the occupied territory. We will not be in Gaza, only the West Bank.
David (and my mother) are less than thrilled, but they know this is important to me and they are being supportive. Luckily, David is the only one who saw the waiver I had to sign--I'm not showing THAT to my mom! =)
I applied for funding to cover the cost of the trip and haven't heard any thing yet. I was going to wait until I had heard something final about finances to announce that I was going, but after a lot of prayer and discernment (and talking to David!), I have decided to go even if the funding falls through. I will keep y'all posted about funding. Keep your fingers crossed!
Kevin, Greta, and I went out to lunch and I asked them if we were crazy for going. Greta, my ever wise and wonderful friend, said "Tiffany, EVERYBODY'S crazy. We're just trying to be a better kind of crazy!"
I think she's right. And I'm beginning to think that's what ALL Christians are called to. So here's to being a "better kind of crazy."
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Just Keep Swimming...
Our camera was sitting on the table where we sit and study so David took this picture of me:
I took one of him (he was thrilled!):
It's midterms for both of us, which means our house is always a mess, we drink WAY too much coffee, and our dogs never get walked. (I'm REALLY tempted to try and teach them to use the toilet!) I haven't been to the mountains since October. David and I spend an average of 30 minutes together a day. Sometimes we'll be studying or at the computer and one of us will just let out a really big sigh. Our motto has been "Just Keep Swimming..." (For our non-Disney friends, that is Dory's line in Finding Nemo.) We know that if we can just keep swimming, the pay off will be worth it.
But it's not easy. And I'm trying to pray. (That seems to be the theme lately!) It's hard not to wish this year away and so I've been praying this prayer:
Thanks be to you, O God,
for the stirrings of new life in me this day,
for rising from the dreams of the night
to a fresh flowing of energy,
for the vitality that awakened my body
and the desires that stir my soul
Let me know the power for life that is in me,
and the might that is in my heart.
Let me know you as the source of such force
and be wise to its true streams and false currents.
Let me serve love with strength this day,
let me serve love with my strength.
In heart and mind and body this day
let me serve love.
-J. Philip Newell
I am trying to be thankful for EACH day. I am trying to look for ways to "serve love," even when it feels like I'm buried in books. I am trying to remember my janitor and migrant friends, whose struggles are so much larger than mine. I am trying to remember how lucky I am to be healthy and alive and to have "the stirrings of new life in me this day." Thanks be to you, O God!
I took one of him (he was thrilled!):
It's midterms for both of us, which means our house is always a mess, we drink WAY too much coffee, and our dogs never get walked. (I'm REALLY tempted to try and teach them to use the toilet!) I haven't been to the mountains since October. David and I spend an average of 30 minutes together a day. Sometimes we'll be studying or at the computer and one of us will just let out a really big sigh. Our motto has been "Just Keep Swimming..." (For our non-Disney friends, that is Dory's line in Finding Nemo.) We know that if we can just keep swimming, the pay off will be worth it.
But it's not easy. And I'm trying to pray. (That seems to be the theme lately!) It's hard not to wish this year away and so I've been praying this prayer:
Thanks be to you, O God,
for the stirrings of new life in me this day,
for rising from the dreams of the night
to a fresh flowing of energy,
for the vitality that awakened my body
and the desires that stir my soul
Let me know the power for life that is in me,
and the might that is in my heart.
Let me know you as the source of such force
and be wise to its true streams and false currents.
Let me serve love with strength this day,
let me serve love with my strength.
In heart and mind and body this day
let me serve love.
-J. Philip Newell
I am trying to be thankful for EACH day. I am trying to look for ways to "serve love," even when it feels like I'm buried in books. I am trying to remember my janitor and migrant friends, whose struggles are so much larger than mine. I am trying to remember how lucky I am to be healthy and alive and to have "the stirrings of new life in me this day." Thanks be to you, O God!
Friday, April 17, 2009
My Amazing Husband
Yesterday David had a medicine test that determined whether or not he would get to pass meds (nurse speak for administering drugs) at his clinicals and he passed! The professor has a rule that if you don't pass, you have to wait two weeks to take the test again. Since his clinicals only last 5 weeks, there was a possibility, if David didn't pass his test, that he wouldn't pass his clinicals. Lots of people in his class did not pass, but David did. I am SO proud of him.
This quarter David has three days of clinicals (12 hour days), two days of class, and is working one day a week. As you can imagine, his schedule prevents him from doing things he loves, snowboarding and mountain biking, and it is also limiting the amount of time we get to spend together. I know David feels tremendous pressure to do well, since not passing ONE class would delay his graduation date and would add thousands of dollars to the amount of money we have to borrow. He is managing the pressure really well and I am so grateful to be married to him. He really is an amazing man! =)
This quarter David has three days of clinicals (12 hour days), two days of class, and is working one day a week. As you can imagine, his schedule prevents him from doing things he loves, snowboarding and mountain biking, and it is also limiting the amount of time we get to spend together. I know David feels tremendous pressure to do well, since not passing ONE class would delay his graduation date and would add thousands of dollars to the amount of money we have to borrow. He is managing the pressure really well and I am so grateful to be married to him. He really is an amazing man! =)
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Move Me
My friend, Lorissa, recorded a song she wrote titled, "Move Me." I think she would kill me if she knew I was putting it on my blog so I'm hoping she's not an avid reader! Here are the lyrics:
Every now and then
my foot falls asleep and
bothers me later
with its tingling.
I don't want to be
like these feet of mine
sleeping
when you're trying to use me.
Move me, Move me, Lord.
Keep my heart alive.
Be the very change
that moves me
and works to make me whole.
I do what I must
mostly collecting dust
Just because I pay the rent,
doesn't mean I'm obedient.
I don't want to be
in my easy chair
when I should be searching
for a throne.
Move me, Move me, Lord.
Keep my heart alive.
Be the very change
that moves me
and works to make me whole.
I love, love, love her song and it's been my prayer all week. I listen in my car, on my ipod, and now on the blog. =)
The lyrics speak to what I've been thinking and feeling lately, trying to figure out to what and where I am being called. I am such a worrier and a planner and I want so badly to know what our life will be like when I'm done with seminary. There are so many decisions I can't seem to make--ordination or no ordination, deacon or elder, Kansas or Colorado--and I end up feeling paralyzed and stuck. And so I'm trying to pray. And wait. And pray for God to move me.
Every now and then
my foot falls asleep and
bothers me later
with its tingling.
I don't want to be
like these feet of mine
sleeping
when you're trying to use me.
Move me, Move me, Lord.
Keep my heart alive.
Be the very change
that moves me
and works to make me whole.
I do what I must
mostly collecting dust
Just because I pay the rent,
doesn't mean I'm obedient.
I don't want to be
in my easy chair
when I should be searching
for a throne.
Move me, Move me, Lord.
Keep my heart alive.
Be the very change
that moves me
and works to make me whole.
I love, love, love her song and it's been my prayer all week. I listen in my car, on my ipod, and now on the blog. =)
The lyrics speak to what I've been thinking and feeling lately, trying to figure out to what and where I am being called. I am such a worrier and a planner and I want so badly to know what our life will be like when I'm done with seminary. There are so many decisions I can't seem to make--ordination or no ordination, deacon or elder, Kansas or Colorado--and I end up feeling paralyzed and stuck. And so I'm trying to pray. And wait. And pray for God to move me.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Our Trip to California
David and I got to spend 4 days with our California family and it was WONDERFUL! We loved getting to be Uncle David and Auntie Tiff to Jacob and Cameron and had a great visit with Christy and Ron. I am sad to be so far away from them, but am trying to be grateful for the time we had. Here are some highlights from our trip:
Our family movie night movie was "Bolt" and I thought the song was SO appropriate for our visit. =)
Our family movie night movie was "Bolt" and I thought the song was SO appropriate for our visit. =)
Monday, March 23, 2009
Cherith Brook
Last weekend I went with a group of young adults from Trinity to "Cherith Brook" in Kansas City. Cherith Brook is a residential Christian community located in the Historic Northeast neighborhood and is committed to sharing table fellowship with strangers and all resources with each other. They are inspired by the early church, the Church of the Savior, and the Catholic Worker. The commit their daily lives to practicing the works of mercy found in Jesus' teachings. They regularly feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, visit the prisoner and the sick. They also understand themselves to be peacemakers and they strive for peacemaking in all its dimensions: political, communal, and personal, working constantly to undo poverty, racism, and militarism.
We left Denver early Thursday morning and arrived at Cherith Brook just in time for their community meal. The kitchen at Cherith Brook was packed full with tables and chairs and over 30 people sat down for a meal together. I ate dinner with Kurt and Norman, two friends of Cherith Brook that live in the community. I quickly realized how different it is to share a meal with people who are homeless instead of the usual ways I interact with them at food banks and soup kitchens. Sitting down and eating together, sharing conversation, made me more vulnerable and forced me to see Kurt and Norman as brothers. It was a neat experience!
Friday morning we started the day at 6:30 with morning prayers. After breakfast, we headed to the "Shower House" to help with their shower ministry. Cherith Brook owns two buildings, the main house and the shower house. At the Shower House, folks can come in, get a clean change of clothes and shower in one of the two showers. They can also get coffee, a warm breakfast, make and receive phone calls, receive mail, and enjoy fellowship with others. Cherith Brook offers showers on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. It is a great way to meet and interact with their neighbors in the community who are homeless.
Friday afternoon we assembled 30 sack lunches and then divided into two groups. My group went with Eric to pass out lunches to people living on the street. We went to a "tent town" hidden in the brush near the Paseo exit ramp and met Diane. Diane is 59 years old and used to be a teacher. She has three grown children who live in Overland Park. Her husband left her, she started drinking, and is now living in a friend's tent by the side of the highway. It was heartbreaking to hear her story. She told us she was angry at God, but she didn't want to be. She wondered why God wouldn't help her. We spent over an hour sitting in front of Diane's tent, listening to and talking with her.
After Diane, we went to an alley way near Cherith Brook where a lot of folks who come to showers hang out. We passed out lunches, chatted a bit, and then I realized what Eric already knew, that they were standing around waiting to buy drugs. Eric told us later that we were in front of a known crack house. When we asked him about it, he told us that a couple of people from Cherith Brook had gone to the crack house and met the elderly couple who owns the house. (They're not the ones selling the drugs but they probably know it's happening) The husband is in a wheel chair and can't get in and out of the house very easily, so Eric and a few others at Cherith Brook are in the process of constructing a wheel chair ramp for the crack house. Yes, that's right. They are a group of crazy Christians who believe in the power of love to transform and renew, and they believe that maybe building a wheel chair ramp for the old man who owns the crack house just might make a difference. It feels crazy to me, but then again, I think the gospel is supposed to sound and feel a little crazy if we're "doing" the gospel right.
Saturday we worked in the garden at Cherith Brook. Over the last couple of years, with the help from some knowledgeable interns, they have been able to grow their garden to a pretty impressive size! We helped get the beds ready for planting.
Saturday evening we celebrated our service and learning with a BBQ dinner and time in downtown KC. It was an amazing trip!
We left Denver early Thursday morning and arrived at Cherith Brook just in time for their community meal. The kitchen at Cherith Brook was packed full with tables and chairs and over 30 people sat down for a meal together. I ate dinner with Kurt and Norman, two friends of Cherith Brook that live in the community. I quickly realized how different it is to share a meal with people who are homeless instead of the usual ways I interact with them at food banks and soup kitchens. Sitting down and eating together, sharing conversation, made me more vulnerable and forced me to see Kurt and Norman as brothers. It was a neat experience!
Friday morning we started the day at 6:30 with morning prayers. After breakfast, we headed to the "Shower House" to help with their shower ministry. Cherith Brook owns two buildings, the main house and the shower house. At the Shower House, folks can come in, get a clean change of clothes and shower in one of the two showers. They can also get coffee, a warm breakfast, make and receive phone calls, receive mail, and enjoy fellowship with others. Cherith Brook offers showers on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. It is a great way to meet and interact with their neighbors in the community who are homeless.
Friday afternoon we assembled 30 sack lunches and then divided into two groups. My group went with Eric to pass out lunches to people living on the street. We went to a "tent town" hidden in the brush near the Paseo exit ramp and met Diane. Diane is 59 years old and used to be a teacher. She has three grown children who live in Overland Park. Her husband left her, she started drinking, and is now living in a friend's tent by the side of the highway. It was heartbreaking to hear her story. She told us she was angry at God, but she didn't want to be. She wondered why God wouldn't help her. We spent over an hour sitting in front of Diane's tent, listening to and talking with her.
After Diane, we went to an alley way near Cherith Brook where a lot of folks who come to showers hang out. We passed out lunches, chatted a bit, and then I realized what Eric already knew, that they were standing around waiting to buy drugs. Eric told us later that we were in front of a known crack house. When we asked him about it, he told us that a couple of people from Cherith Brook had gone to the crack house and met the elderly couple who owns the house. (They're not the ones selling the drugs but they probably know it's happening) The husband is in a wheel chair and can't get in and out of the house very easily, so Eric and a few others at Cherith Brook are in the process of constructing a wheel chair ramp for the crack house. Yes, that's right. They are a group of crazy Christians who believe in the power of love to transform and renew, and they believe that maybe building a wheel chair ramp for the old man who owns the crack house just might make a difference. It feels crazy to me, but then again, I think the gospel is supposed to sound and feel a little crazy if we're "doing" the gospel right.
Saturday we worked in the garden at Cherith Brook. Over the last couple of years, with the help from some knowledgeable interns, they have been able to grow their garden to a pretty impressive size! We helped get the beds ready for planting.
Saturday evening we celebrated our service and learning with a BBQ dinner and time in downtown KC. It was an amazing trip!
Monday, March 9, 2009
Matt and Emily's Wedding
This past weekend we were in Topeka for Matt and Emily's wedding. It was such a joy to be with Matt and Emily to help them celebrate the beginning of their life together! It was a whirlwind visit--but we got to see a lot of family. The wedding was beautiful and Emily and Matt looked SO happy. We wish them a lifetime of blessings and joy!
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