Here and There and What Fun

I am finally coming to a better understanding of life. I think. There will always be bad. There will always be something to counteract the good, to dampen the joy. But, one should focus on blessings and what the Lord has done, to keep things in perspective. Things are not perfect, but whenever I have a bad attitude or complain, my blessings and the Lord's goodness stare me in the face and I realize that I am being ungrateful.

I love my job. I got back from a forum on free markets put on by the college, and I had a very good time. I stayed with my exhibit and talked to people about it. I met some interesting people and had some good conversations. And, I got to stay in a nice hotel and eat good food. I also got some good sleep on a very comfortable bed. Feather pillows and down comforter. Aaah. It was also so nice to be around other people. As a student, I was used to being around a lot of people (relatively) and now I'm in a much smaller circle. I like to meet new people and have good conversations. I met a Canadian guy who says "about" like me. :-) Also, I had a good amount of down time, and one of the other workers asked me how I kept from going crazy just sitting around. I was reading a book and enjoying the solitude. I had times where I was surrounded by people and times where I could just be. And I like that. A good mix. Also, the wait staff was very kind to bring me my meals. I will have to post a pic of the first dessert. Amazing! They had chimes that they used to call people to dinner and it was the same intervals of the hymn that goes, "Almighty God, Father all glorious, oer all victorious, come and reign over us, ancient of days." The chimes went to the "Almighty God" part, and I would then sing the rest. :-) It is nice that I have a job that has a little bit of traveling to keep things interesting. :-)

Well, I'm going to eat a bit. TTFN

I am not going to be at church when superintendent Ramundo comes to preach. He has a very interesting style. He uses literary devises to the extreme. Instead, I'm going home that weekend for my mom's birthday.

This is fair week, and I went to the fair 3 times. I love fair food. Fried food is so yummy. :-) I have a weakness for fried food, as long as it's not greasy. I don't do grease well.

Not much to say. I'm doing laundry right now and I think I'll go on a walk soon.

Toodling Around

Well, a bit more than toodling. I had quite the adventure today. I went to Ann Arbor and back and survived some of the worst traffic I've ever been in and the GRE. Also getting lost. Quite the day. First off, my plan was to leave several hours before I had to take the test and go to the Shar showroom. So, my test was at 1 and I left here at 9:30. I didn't make it to Ann Arbor until 2 hours later. Uff da. There was a really bad accident on 94 East, and traffic was really backed up. I was close to an exit, so I was able to get off, but it was really backed up too. If I would have stayed on 94 I probably wouldn't have made it to the test. But, I trusted my little GPS and took a country road back way, which put me on 94 past the accident. There was no one behind me. It was strange to see a 6 lane road so empty. Then, I took the GRE and got a decent score, enough to get me into grad school. :-) Yay! Then, I got royally lost trying to find a certain park to wait for my friend. That was an ordeal, but it was such a gorgeous day and a scenic route, so I didn't mind. It was definitely the Lord today, because usually I get really frustrated and upset, but He helped me deal with the driving adventure.

Gotta go. Btw, I am getting caught up in the Yorkshire miniseries Flambards. I like it. :-)

God is Not a Warm Fuzzy

Modern Christianity likes to describe God as loving, good shepherd, kind father, meek and mild, etc. God is love. Yes, He is, but so often Christianity is painted as a warm fuzzy, a good feeling, an intimate walk with God who is always there and never runs out of love and mercy. And this is all true, but it is only half, and behind these truths is the implication that you will always feel happiness and joy, you will always feel close to God. If you think about the reactions of people who encountered God in the Bible, however, these are not the emotions evoked. Some people fell down dead. Awe. Fear and trembling. "I am undone." Encountering God is a scary thing. When I am getting closer to God, I don't necessarily feel better. This goes counter to what we often think. We throw around phrases like "refiner's fire" and "purify." These are painful words. When God works, He works against our sinful nature, and that does not feel good. Sometimes it's through circumstances and sometimes it's through our relationship with Him. Sometimes God is abrasive. Like sand paper. Or like fire, burning away the impurities. I think (and hope) that I am coming to a better understanding of how God has and is working in my life. What He does for me, and against my sinful nature. It's hard. But He also gives good times. He does give some warm fuzzies. The times when you are filled with praise and joy. And it is good. But it is not always so, and we should not expect this. Just because we don't have what we consider to be the appropriate feeling doesn't mean that God isn't there and that He isn't working. Fear and trembling. Awe. Frustration. They are powerful emotions and He can use them just as well as joy, excitement, and contentment. Fear and tremble at His might. Be frustrated with your sin and incapacity to ever be good enough.

One of the keys to the Christian faith is dealing with and realizing the reality that we will Never be good enough. It's a part of human nature to want to do things for God, to earn what He's given us, but we can't. We should want to serve Him. That is very important and shows that our faith is alive and real, but it will never be good enough. I cannot earn my way to heaven. I must simply bow at His feet, pleading for the blood of Jesus to drench my sins.

Count Your Blessings, Name Them One by One

Reasons why I'm glad that I'm here:

1. The snack bar now has fried mushrooms.
2. They are doing the Messiah this December.
3. Aquila, Shakespeare theater, is doing TWO shows: The Iliad and A Comedy of Errors.
4. I have found an very good mechanic place.
5. Little brother dog: the Bean.

1. My church family.
2. Ministry and worship at church.
3. Close proximity to friends.
4. My job.
5. My co-workers and employer.

These not necessarily in order. But I am very excited that fried mushrooms are finally at the snack bar. I asked about them all last year, and now they're here! And they are very good.

Exploring

Things to be shipped from the depot. Notice the coffin. And the chickens.

The depot was so cool. It was from the early to mid 1900s and the things that look like butterfly nets by the wall are actually devices to deliver messages to someone on a moving train. So cool!

Another view of the depot office. I would love an office like this one.

Picture of a root cellar. That is real food. Potatoes and pears.

This is Ann Arbor, not Sauder Village. This is one of the fairy doors.

Shout out to Angy.

A CPS guy.

On Saturday Jessie came down and we went exploring. I wanted to see some of the sights in the area, and I asked one of the librarians if she had any suggestions, and she mentioned Sauder Village. It is about an hour away in Archbold, OH. It kind of reminds me of Rockome Gardens, but more authentic and a bit less cheesy, though to be fair I have not been to Rockome Gardens since it's had new management. Anyway, we had such a good time! Every building had someone dressed in period garb and they gave a mini tour and explanations about the building. Many buildings were little shops and people were doing authentic crafts. They actually made the wares in the stores like in the weaving shop, basket shop, tin shop, broom shop, glass shop, pottery place, etc. We both bought leaf tea in the herb shop. I had to buy a tea ball too, as I had never bought leaf tea before. Strawberry Tingle Rooibos. It smells good. Jessie bought 100 Monkeys tea. :-) We spent about 4 hours there and it didn't feel like that at all. There were other people there, but it wasn't crowded, and we often were in the buildings alone and were able to get a personal tour and information. We talked about pigs feet with a lady in one of the old houses from the early 1900s, the guy in the woodshop made us wooden hearts from a pedal powered saw, and Jessie tried her hand a basket making. There was also an old printing press that still worked. It was so cool!

Our favorite, though, was definitely the barber shop. An older man was our "tour guide" and he new so many cool things. He showed us the curling irons for the handle bar mustaches, the hand powered clippers, and the personal shaving cups. Also, I now know what the barber pole stands for. In the middle ages, the barber also acted as a surgeon and bloodletter, and the white stood for bandages, the red for blood, and the blue for the veins he would tap into. Rather gruesome. He was so cool, but we didn't get the chance to go back and tell him that he was our favorite. He was replaced by a younger guy in a red barber vest. Sigh. We were disappointed.

The village had some Mennonite roots, so they had a display on the CPS, and I took pics for Angy.

Also, we really enjoyed the depot. It reminded me of playing around after meetings as a child and sneaking into the old depot outside the meeting house. Many of the buildings reminded me of the Rutherford house and its out buildings. They had a doctor's office and jail too. Their's were better kept, though.

I am so glad that we found Sauder Village. It's not that far and it was a very pleasant way to spend an afternoon. Fun activities and good conversation and friendship. I'm glad that I now have some time to explore the area. The main thing is to have people to explore it with.

Coming Again

My house feels like the 2nd Coming. I call it my house, it kind of feels like my house, I treat it like my house, but it is not my house. And anytime the owner could come back and find my dirty dishes and blanket and unvacuumed carpet. And not be happy. It's really not that bad, we just have different standards. So, now when I leave something undone, instead of being able to just leave it until later, I have the feeling of, I hope she doesn't come back today and see my dishes. I think that's what I do with God too. Leaving things just a little undone, just a little unprepared. Well, I need to keep my life and my house in order. Because they could come back any time.

Also, I feel like I'm in the middle of a mine field. Especially when I drive at night. Deer are everywhere. I've seen several in the middle of the day.