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4 Guys, 1 Girl, and a Bible

I think the kids have decided that they like my working at the school.  I mean, how many students can text their moms, on their lunch breaks, and special-order lunch?

For two days straight, Soccer Chick has done just this.  It goes something like this, “Peanut butter sandwich and some pretzels please?”

Sure thing.  No problem.  One of the hats I wear is Short Order Cook.

My plan was to return to my classroom and text Chicky to let her know I was back, with her sandwich.  The classroom I was assigned to today was located in the media center.

As I walked in, I saw Chicky sitting at a table with a group of friends.  We joked a littlet as she grabbed her food from the sack.  I then left to make a quick stop in the teacher’s lounge.

When I walked back through the tables, en-route to my classroom, I was going to give a quick wave to Chicky; however, what I saw made me pause, hand in mid-air.

Chicky (the lone girl) and her friends (four guys) were at the table, eyes closed, Bibles open in front of them.

Yep.

They were having a Bible study…right in the middle of the library…and praying…right in the middle of the library…right in the middle of lunch time.

Pretty impressive, eh?

Ironing Can Be Fun

Oh boy…I can just see you rolling your eyes at the title of my post today.  Truth be told, I would be rolling them as well if I wasn’t the author of it.

Today was a bit stressful at work.

Well, “bit” isn’t quite the right word.  More like VERY.  More about that in my next post.

Anyhoo…after taking Molly for a walk (yeah, you KNOW it was stressful if I actually got off the couch and exercised), I returned home and decided to iron.

Well, deciding to iron was, in all honesty, an afterthought.  I decided to listen to an AMAZING program that I discovered a few days ago.  I set up the computer on my dining room table and figured I could be productive…hence the ironing.

The program is Revive Our Hearts Radio.

How I found this site is a long story.

Last year, my sister attended the Revive Our Hearts Conference in Chicago.  She came home energized and eager to share points from the key note speaker.

Ho hum, I listened.  While it sounded interesting, I didn’t get too excited.  This might seem shallow to you, but I’m just being honest about how I responded.  I love my sister.  She’s an amazing example of what a woman of God should be.  She’s a prayer warrior and devoted wife and mother.  I could learn much from her.

Fast forward to a week or two ago.  I started corresponding via email with one of the gals who commented about one of my blog posts.  It was quickly apparent that she, too, is a woman of God with much wisdom.  She mentioned the Revive Our Hearts ministry in one of her messages.  This was the prompt I needed to check out the site, although I was already subscribed to the True Woman ’08 blog.  I didn’t think it would be much different since True Woman is an off-shoot of Revive our Hearts.

Boy, was I wrong.

The first thing I noticed after going to the home page was the title of the current series of radio programs…a study about the life of Joshua.

Hmmm…sounded interesting.  I think I poked around a bit and felt like I hit the jackpot when I saw the series titled “You’ve Come a Long Way Baby.” This is the a two-part speech that my sister was treated to at her conference.

Yeah, I figured it was God directing me there.

So I listened.

And I was blown away.

You MUST listen to both parts.  It’s convicting and thought-inspiring.  I don’t want to spoil it for you, so go listen.

After listening to these, I am hooked.  I’ve subscribed to the podcast.  Episodes are about 22 minutes.  I went back and decided to listen to the Joshua program; however, I stopped myself when I realized that this is an ongoing study.  I’ve had to hunt around a bit, but I did find where it begins…here, on February 18th.

Go to it and listen.  Nancy Leigh DeMoss is easy on the ears.  The truths she puts out are like fire…convicting, educational, and inspiring.

Trust me.

I don’t do ironing on a good day.  I certainly had not planned on doing it today after the crazy few hours of work.

If something is good enough to get me to stand around for an hour and a half (I listened to three lessons), it’s definitely worth investigating.

A Cloud of Sadness

Last night, I pulled out my Inspirational Study Bible (edited by Max Lucado).

I decided to read Matthew 12, the chapter that my Bible study will be discussing this week.

This Bible has “Life Lessons” that run down the left and right outer margins.  The lessons accompany the current text.

If you have a Bible handy, take a peek at verses 22-34.  These verses are about worry.  The “Life Lesson” on these pages focused on these verses.  Lucado shares a quote by Corrie ten Boom (my hero and the second person I want to meet in Heaven).

Corrie was known to say, “When the train goes through a tunnel and the world gets dark, do you jump out?  Of course not.  You sit still and trust the engineer to get you through.”

I love this!  Times are quite dark right now.  Financially, many in this world are struggling.  Morally, we’re at an all-time low.  And yet, we need to remember that Someone else is in charge of our lives, directing our way toward a final destination that is full of light and joy.

So, why the cloud of sadness today?

After attending my usual church service, I began a quest to find Rooster, who was, more than likely, stuffing his face with breakfast goodies.

I ran into a friend who works at the school I used to be employed at…the place I worked before my position got cut and I began working at the law firm.  It’s been a couple of years since I left, but the staff is like family.  It’s a close bunch.

She told me that it had been a tough week.  I instantly chalked it up to budget woes and the fact that this school is being repurposed (i.e. closed).

She went on to elaborate.

One of the school’s former teachers committed suicide this week.

It was someone I had known well during my time there.

He had not worked there long before I started, so we were both learning the system.  During his employment at the school, he met another teacher who would become his wife a couple of years later.

My very first assignment on my first day of work had been to install a printer in his room.  We joked because I was very nervous, sensing his keen eyes watching every move I made.  Would I pass the test of “techie” know-how?  I did, and we began an easy friendship.  He had a dry sense of humor that hinted at deep thought.  We frequently bantered back and forth, with me giving as good as I got.  Fun times…

During one of our conversations, I learned that he had become a minister before beginning a career in education.  I don’t know why he left the ministry.  I didn’t want to pry, but I had a feeling that he was still lost, seeking his way as many of us do.

And now this.

I am so sad for those left behind.  My heart goes out to the wife who loved him so much.  She had such a spring in her step during their courtship.

Most of all, I’m sad for him.  I pray that he found some kind of peace before he left this world.  I pray that he is in God’s arms now…the worries of this life left behind.

I’m just sad.