thanksgiving!

So, this past week has been a little crazy.
my work SUCKED monday, tuesday, wednesday...like really sucked.
The good news is that rachel and joel are here--so here's the rundown (pretty much just the facts-so you know what you've missed!!):

MONDAY:
got home late. rachel and joel had arrived. had quizzers over. played with them. ate soup. erika came over to see rachel and joel and spend the night. played the bean game.


TUESDAY:
after work went to chicago. ate at foodlife. went to altar boyz with rachel and joel. came home. slept.

WEDNESDAY:
Umm...after work, went to st. louis. ate at taco bell on the way. had christmas with scott's family. Really good times. watched chris and erica start preparing for thanksgiving dinner.

THURSDAY:
Thanksgiving with scotts family. played some games during the parade. took a nap. drove home. went through ads with rachel and stevi. played the bean game.

FRIDAY:
3:40 AM Went to Kohls, Penney's, Best Buy, Carsons, Target. breakfast. Home by 8.
rachel went back to bed. Stevi and i returned to the shopping. JoAnn's, Bath and Body works, Bonsai store, Michaels (best buy again). Stopped at parents house. Home by 12:30

Went to Chinese with Rachel, Joel, Scott, Andy, Naomi, and Stevi. YUM.
Watched a survivor video. Took a nap.

Went to abbie and garretts for nacho dinner, and games/hanging out/playing with the kids.
came home. ate pie.

10:49 PM -got comment from Lena that I needed to blog. So thats what I am currently doing.

POSTING. One week from right now, we'll be in St. Louis.

thats not my....

....ministry.

Many of you who have spent any time with me over the last year know that i have been fighting a losing battle with God when it comes to the senior high youth at my church.

I LOVE working with preteens--and well--as far as teenagers--i love quizzing--and so i have to encounter teenagers there--but generally on a more focused scale--and beyond that--well--im really more into childrens ministry.

14 months ago, we moved back to kankakee, and started a quiz team at kankakee first. it was great, because scott could really get involved with the senior high students, and i could spend time getting involved with our preteens. which is what i did. i spent wednesday nights, filling in and helping out in classrooms in our childrens department. I LOVE THE CHILDRENS DEPARTMENT. even beyond preteens, i spent some time with first graders, and well..it was just an overall good time--i went to district teen events--I mean, i totally supported NYI and what the youth pastors and leaders across the district were trying to do--i just didn't really feel like i needed to be a part of it. I was even going to NYC-which is a huge-every-four-year-teen-event. But, I convinced myself that was enough.

At the beginning of the summer, i was teaching 2nd grade sundayschool, and helping out at district youth events. My youth pastor would ask if I wanted to help with this or that or whatever--and I firmly told him over and over that senior high students were not my ministry. I was happy and comfortable, and well, content in the role i was in.

Thats where God comes in. See, where I'm content and what God calls me to are totally different things. I spent some time getting to know some of the students who would be going to NYC, and realized that there was a huge need for female leaders in our youth group. So foolishly, I began to pray that God would send someone to these amazing young people. I showed up and helped out at our district stuff pre-NYC. And then I went. and I remember after the friday evening service, it was time to tell the youth pastor the crazy thing God had been speaking into my heart since before the trip. I didn't really want to tell him--because, well--then I would be held accountable--but that is why we speak--to be held accountable.

(WAIT!! Heres something else you need to know--growing, getting out of my comfort zone-i've done it-but senior high students scare me to death. I mean, i was in high school once--and i know how hard it can be sometimes. I also know from being around our students that they expect honestly. Weak, flawed, sincere honesty. And, they know when you're bluffing.)

So I told my youth pastor that friday at NYC--I had just gotten the opportunity to take over the preteen girls sunday school class, and I was NOT going to give that up, and didn't feel that God wanted me to. BUT, i was going to start showing up at senior high youth group on wednesday nights--because God called me to be that person i had been praying for.

After our amazing preteen retreat in October, I offered my services to our youth pastor for the senior high retreat on an "as needed" basis. Maybe i was tired, maybe i realized the value of retreat experiences...maybe i was just hungry.

two weeks ago, my adorable husband calls me up after youth group (i had come home) and says "Steve needs you to go on retreat. Is that ok?"

Thanks God. I was kinda hoping that i had met my "requirement" with showing up on wednesday nights, and doing some follow up throughout the week. I mean, i could talk about retreat once they got back, right? but i realized that maybe God's plans are bigger than mine--so i said i would go.

Now--reading this, you might think--you can't be effective where don't want to be. BUT--thats where it gets super crazy. I believe that God gives us the desires of our hearts if we truly seek HIM with our whole being. And that must mean that i was wrong. It's ok to have more than one passion. More than one desire. I can LOVE my preteen girls on Sunday mornings, and I have come to honestly love the girls in our youth group. I'm not there out of some "obligation".

I'm there because God wants me to be. And, I've learned but listening to Gods whisper--its where I really want to be-even if its not....well....maybe i need Philippians 2:12-13 and God's Grace for the adventure.

Happy thanksgiving week.
Oh, and in case I didn't happen to mention it--I had a great time on our Senior high retreat.

a-m-a-z-i-n-g

so, lena tells me that since im not sick, i need to update. i think thats a good plan.

So, this last weekend was pretty much amazing. friday night the quiz team headed up to erikas house for our first overnight of the year. we went to california pizza kitchen for dinner--and i had to TAKE the Bible away from the girls. thats a good feeling. they were all really nervous and excited for the quiz. so then we went to erikas and hung out and talked..and practiced and whatever.

saturday was the quiz. the first round, danielle had 40 points, lena had 20 points, and well..i was crazy nervous. but things shaped up, and they both placed in the top 5 so they get to go to st. louis--but the team suffered for putting personal scores first--and both danielle and lena said they didnt like doing things that way--so it was a good lesson. the team still took 3rd (after losing the first tournament round on question 20).

then we went to chipotle, and had to wait for rice, and then came home. overall, it was a good trip.

The best thing though is that tonight, lena, danielle, lori and i got together to go over chapter 4 a little more and have some pie. sneaky sneaky pie. it threw danielles fork. and her pants suffered. we laughed a lot, and talked about the trip, and talked about retreat...and laughed some more.

and-so that everyone knows. jeremy is a computer hacking genious-making him the hero of the day.

Being Sick.

Ok, every fall, I get this awesome cold that lasts, well until spring. It's onset is pretty terrible, as those who were on my quiz team last november can tell you, because i carried a kleenex box around with me the whole weekend. So, everyone always tells me to take medicine to get better sooner. This is a GREAT theory. But thats all it is. On Sunday, I start to notice a tingle in my throat, and by monday morning, the throat is hurting.

I work all day monday, drinking tea, and trying to ignore the throat. I take some medicine for throats. THEN, Tuesday-the throat still hurts, and im starting to get the sniffles and the cough. So, I immediately rush out and buy TYLENOL COLD multi-symptom SEVERE, believing the theory that I can defeat the cold.

Wednesday, I'm still coughing and sneezing a little, but I feel TERRIFIC. It must be working! Yay!! Everyone was right! Medicine does help.

Which brings us to today: I'm sitting at home. I got up at 8 to go to work, and felt like i had been buried alive. Yeah..I felt that good. I could barely breathe, and my mouth was full of this disgusting mucusy stuff. SERIOUSLY???

So, I brush my teeth, drink a cup of hot tea, and get ready for work. Then I start in the with coughing. After about 7 minutes, I can hardly breathe again and so I call my supervisor to tell her i won't be coming in-take more medicine (what the heck-it worked before) then i Get back in bed. Only to wake up at 10:30 feeling again like i had been buried alive in green slime, and couldn't breathe.

The cold has defeated me. I sit here, staring at the miracle medicine, trying to decide if it will really help or if it will again attempt to bury me alive. Curse you TYLENOL COLD!!

I've used 5 kleenex in the writing of this disgusting blog. I'm gonna lay on the couch and hope someone brings me some soup.