So, it was my turn to be prayed for in terms of a superhero identity this past week. Hurrah! Since it was such a great week last week, I really expected the moon. We were missing some folks, though, and it seemed everyone (including me) was fighting something- distractions for sure. What struck me was Sheila's picture for me, which was Frosty the Snowman. Her sense was that God was saying that, like Frosty, there was something in me that made me approachable (I'm guessing a jolly, happy soul), and that, also like Frosty, I was adaptable regardless of the format. Makes me giggly to think that so far God has called me out as a cartoon character (Jolly Green Giant being the other one) in terms of a superhero, and that both are happy and big, one way or another.
We started the Lazarus material as well, and I felt like I was talking in circles. Probably was. We had some good sharing about our money stories, and it was great to hear people's miracle stories as well- Chacha getting a reduced payment on her loans because she's supporting 9 people in the DR and Haiti; Manny and his "lottery ticket" gifting; and Sara with her odd job blessing that's helping her make ends meet. Sheila warned me before we started that this can be a particularly tricky subject for people to talk about, and I'm definitely feeling it to be true for me. We'll see how people do in the coming weeks.
It's still fun, and now we're getting into the hard stuff.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Supernatural Heroes
Week 4: we found an old poster that Kids' Church made. It's of a "Supergirl", with the title, "Supernatural Heroes!" We're SO adopting that for our group.
10 people showed up. 10! It's been years since I've been part of a group that big! Not that size matters, but it's one of many things telling us that what we're doing is something important and something that other people want to sign on for. Chacha recruited most of the group from the Haiti Team, but it's also cool to see how they're trying to set time aside to do this (two are coming straight from a Zumba class).
We continued to pray about each other's superhero identity, and more fun stuff is coming up. Really deep revelations about people and how God sees them. What's even better is the depth of what's being shared, as well as the "confirmation" of it through multiple people having similar senses of what God is saying about that person. There's a strong sense of God in each meeting so far, and I felt my own spiritual butt get kicked a bit as Manny shared what God's been doing in him in general, something along the lines of I have so much more to be vulnerable to God in order to do some of the hard-core stuff He may be calling me to (but for sure is inviting others into). Some new nicknames: The Compassionator; Flash; Oak Tree/Rainbow; Torch/Firefly...
We have two more to pray for, and we're starting the "Lazarus at the Gate" materials, too. I'm really excited!
10 people showed up. 10! It's been years since I've been part of a group that big! Not that size matters, but it's one of many things telling us that what we're doing is something important and something that other people want to sign on for. Chacha recruited most of the group from the Haiti Team, but it's also cool to see how they're trying to set time aside to do this (two are coming straight from a Zumba class).
We continued to pray about each other's superhero identity, and more fun stuff is coming up. Really deep revelations about people and how God sees them. What's even better is the depth of what's being shared, as well as the "confirmation" of it through multiple people having similar senses of what God is saying about that person. There's a strong sense of God in each meeting so far, and I felt my own spiritual butt get kicked a bit as Manny shared what God's been doing in him in general, something along the lines of I have so much more to be vulnerable to God in order to do some of the hard-core stuff He may be calling me to (but for sure is inviting others into). Some new nicknames: The Compassionator; Flash; Oak Tree/Rainbow; Torch/Firefly...
We have two more to pray for, and we're starting the "Lazarus at the Gate" materials, too. I'm really excited!
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Three weeks and all is well
It sounds cliche but it's been really fun and exciting to see the small group take off. It's not growing astronomically, numbers-wise, but I'm having fun each time I talk with Sheila and we ponder the shape of things.
We wanted to frame the small group around two things specifically: the Boston Faith and Justice Network's curriculum, Lazarus at the Gate, which takes a 12-week look at wealth being a blessing, and how we can order our lives to free up resources to bless others. It's not meant to make anyone feel guilty about how much they have, but it provides a vehicle through which we can see what else we can do in order to be a blessing to others and seek economic justice.
The other pole was a trip to Haiti. Helping our church establish a meaningful connection to Haiti is something I've been working on for a few years now. As a church, we also want to partner with friends in Liberia and the Middle East. What we've noticed is we have high-faith opportunities for trips, but nothing for people just getting their feet wet. The trip we'll take is with Beyond Borders, which focuses on community-development issues (not just poverty-reduction, but overarching social issues). They sponsor Transformational Travel, which is an invitation to live among the community for an extended time and "sit and see" what poverty looks like, encouraging relationships, and seeing before acting.
Overall, we're setting this in the context of Heroic Leadership, a book by Chris Lowney, a former Jesuit priest who wrote about the leadership principles of the Jesuits and how they can translate into successful ventures today.
An odd mix of things, but it's been pretty fun and eye-opening. We spent time this week asking God about each of our heroic identities. So far, we've got a Freedom Fighter, Dragon Slayer, and a Captain. Three more are up to bat this coming Tuesday, and I'm excited to see what else God puts in our midst.
We wanted to frame the small group around two things specifically: the Boston Faith and Justice Network's curriculum, Lazarus at the Gate, which takes a 12-week look at wealth being a blessing, and how we can order our lives to free up resources to bless others. It's not meant to make anyone feel guilty about how much they have, but it provides a vehicle through which we can see what else we can do in order to be a blessing to others and seek economic justice.
The other pole was a trip to Haiti. Helping our church establish a meaningful connection to Haiti is something I've been working on for a few years now. As a church, we also want to partner with friends in Liberia and the Middle East. What we've noticed is we have high-faith opportunities for trips, but nothing for people just getting their feet wet. The trip we'll take is with Beyond Borders, which focuses on community-development issues (not just poverty-reduction, but overarching social issues). They sponsor Transformational Travel, which is an invitation to live among the community for an extended time and "sit and see" what poverty looks like, encouraging relationships, and seeing before acting.
Overall, we're setting this in the context of Heroic Leadership, a book by Chris Lowney, a former Jesuit priest who wrote about the leadership principles of the Jesuits and how they can translate into successful ventures today.
An odd mix of things, but it's been pretty fun and eye-opening. We spent time this week asking God about each of our heroic identities. So far, we've got a Freedom Fighter, Dragon Slayer, and a Captain. Three more are up to bat this coming Tuesday, and I'm excited to see what else God puts in our midst.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
GAH!
The older I get, the less GAH moments there are for me to experience. YET, I'm always having to bite my tongue because there's ALWAYS something that comes up, out from left field and behind the Green Monster (so to speak).
I led worship for the Leaders' meeting a few Saturdays ago. That doesn't sound so intimidating, but I was asked the night before, and I've never done it on my own, and haven't played keyboard in about a month, so...GAH! I'm still working out singing and playing at the same time. I still feel like a third string player on a roster of A-listers in terms of the talent we've got musically in our church. And, yes, I get performance anxiety. No matter how much is said about vulnerability in worship, and just making a joyful noise, I'm still aware that I'm in the midst of people who have professional-level skills and training, and here am I in the midst of them.
Dave did talk about going to a worship leaders' gathering in Zurich and talked about how powerful worship was, as it was coming out of a place of firm faith in the midst of incredibly challenging circumstances. It reminded me of my last year in Poland, when in the midst of all the family chaos and strife, and having to make difficult decisions, I still had to lead worship for our church. It was more about choosing to believe God was all the things I was singing about and standing in that, and it was pretty powerful for me (and, I later heard from those in the church, for them as well).
I'm still working on not feeling like I always have to pretend to have it all together, both in worship leading as well as in most things I do. This season seems to be about feeling the strength of God as I do things I'm not always comfortable with, or stepping off the ledge (like in Indiana Jones) and trusting that there's a walkway underneath me to carry me over.
I led worship for the Leaders' meeting a few Saturdays ago. That doesn't sound so intimidating, but I was asked the night before, and I've never done it on my own, and haven't played keyboard in about a month, so...GAH! I'm still working out singing and playing at the same time. I still feel like a third string player on a roster of A-listers in terms of the talent we've got musically in our church. And, yes, I get performance anxiety. No matter how much is said about vulnerability in worship, and just making a joyful noise, I'm still aware that I'm in the midst of people who have professional-level skills and training, and here am I in the midst of them.
Dave did talk about going to a worship leaders' gathering in Zurich and talked about how powerful worship was, as it was coming out of a place of firm faith in the midst of incredibly challenging circumstances. It reminded me of my last year in Poland, when in the midst of all the family chaos and strife, and having to make difficult decisions, I still had to lead worship for our church. It was more about choosing to believe God was all the things I was singing about and standing in that, and it was pretty powerful for me (and, I later heard from those in the church, for them as well).
I'm still working on not feeling like I always have to pretend to have it all together, both in worship leading as well as in most things I do. This season seems to be about feeling the strength of God as I do things I'm not always comfortable with, or stepping off the ledge (like in Indiana Jones) and trusting that there's a walkway underneath me to carry me over.
And we've launched
New small group started last night. We're going to explore global poverty, our lifestyles, our talents, our "superhero" identities and how it can all work together to befriend and mutually help people in Haiti. Sheila did a great job going through a story from Heroic Leadership by Chris Lowney that has us thinking about what helping other people out spiritually can actually mean. I'm excited for how this is all coming together. I'm praying for a Band of Brothers to go through this with us.
Friday, September 10, 2010
When I grow up...
So, part of my journey now that I'm 40 is assessing where I am and where I want to go. I signed up for career coaching with a friend from my LINK days, Brent, to figure out what kinds of work I'd best enjoy/be suited for/wouldn't bang my head against the wall whilst doing. I've shared this news with a variety of people and got a number of reactions, but the common question is, "So, have there been any surprises?"
To me, that question itself is a surprise because I've been hoping that this process would reveal something incredibly new and exciting and my whole life would transform into this happy bubble of unicorns and lollipops. But I guess that, by now, there are very few true surprises left, since I've spent 40 years getting to know who I am. Which is both comforting and depressing.
In all honesty, I don't know that I ever had a "when I grow up, I want to be..." moment. I spent a lot of time around my grandparents, for whom doing well was a big deal. I was encouraged to go into computers because they saw this as a good ticket to success, not because it was necessarily something I was good at or liked.
So, I guess that, despite the wide variety in things I've done for fun or for work or "just because", it is surprising that my interests gravitate toward teaching or leading other people. The Top 10 list that was generated by the surveys I took came out with "librarian, top executive officer, military officer, corporate trainer, ESL instructor, college instructor, college professor, chef", some of which I've actually done (I'll leave it up to y'all to figure out which ones) and leave me wondering where I'd be if I had pursued those paths further than what I had done.
Thankfully, this is just another step down the whole path for me. That list isn't a straight-jacket for career options, and my mind is already playing around with what's possible given everything in my life (experiences, interests, actual skills, etc.).
More to come...
To me, that question itself is a surprise because I've been hoping that this process would reveal something incredibly new and exciting and my whole life would transform into this happy bubble of unicorns and lollipops. But I guess that, by now, there are very few true surprises left, since I've spent 40 years getting to know who I am. Which is both comforting and depressing.
In all honesty, I don't know that I ever had a "when I grow up, I want to be..." moment. I spent a lot of time around my grandparents, for whom doing well was a big deal. I was encouraged to go into computers because they saw this as a good ticket to success, not because it was necessarily something I was good at or liked.
So, I guess that, despite the wide variety in things I've done for fun or for work or "just because", it is surprising that my interests gravitate toward teaching or leading other people. The Top 10 list that was generated by the surveys I took came out with "librarian, top executive officer, military officer, corporate trainer, ESL instructor, college instructor, college professor, chef", some of which I've actually done (I'll leave it up to y'all to figure out which ones) and leave me wondering where I'd be if I had pursued those paths further than what I had done.
Thankfully, this is just another step down the whole path for me. That list isn't a straight-jacket for career options, and my mind is already playing around with what's possible given everything in my life (experiences, interests, actual skills, etc.).
More to come...
Thursday, September 9, 2010
THE Trip
It's been five months since the Big Trip to Europe. Lots to say about it, and I'll share snippets here and there.
For now, let me say that I really love traveling. It's been incredible to have the opportunity to go to different parts of the world and see different cultures up front and personal, and NOT in a Disney World sort of way (nothing against Disney World; it's one of my favorite places, but highly artificial in terms of the "world culture" it exhibits). Many fun moments in this trip, and, true to form, God did the wacky and got me stuck an extra week due to the volcanic ash cloud (really, how much more random does THAT sound?!?!!?).
The things I'm taking away from my time are the long train rides where Don Miller and Sue Monk Kidd were my companions; renewing old friendships (including one from my grad school days in a new-to-me country); other wacky travel adventures; speaking other languages (and being able to negotiate! YES, I've arrived!); and playing with kids young and old. Sigh....
Upcoming trips: going to Disney World (told you it was one of my favorite places!) with my nephew, niece, brother, sister and her hubby; Haiti in the spring and maybe, fingers crossed, Australia.
For now, let me say that I really love traveling. It's been incredible to have the opportunity to go to different parts of the world and see different cultures up front and personal, and NOT in a Disney World sort of way (nothing against Disney World; it's one of my favorite places, but highly artificial in terms of the "world culture" it exhibits). Many fun moments in this trip, and, true to form, God did the wacky and got me stuck an extra week due to the volcanic ash cloud (really, how much more random does THAT sound?!?!!?).
The things I'm taking away from my time are the long train rides where Don Miller and Sue Monk Kidd were my companions; renewing old friendships (including one from my grad school days in a new-to-me country); other wacky travel adventures; speaking other languages (and being able to negotiate! YES, I've arrived!); and playing with kids young and old. Sigh....
Upcoming trips: going to Disney World (told you it was one of my favorite places!) with my nephew, niece, brother, sister and her hubby; Haiti in the spring and maybe, fingers crossed, Australia.
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