Give Me Jesus

Me, Mary, Stacey, Rochelle, Carissa, and Callie

Have you ever heard that song that goes, “You can have all this world but give me Jesus”? I really like Fernando Ortega's version. I recommend giving it a listen if you haven't already. And if you have, I recommend listening again, because it's good. This is something that God has been revealing to me over the last couple months...how there really is nothing I have, no relationships, no stuff, no reputation, nothing that compares to Jesus. And if all those things were stripped away, would Jesus be enough for me? I was sitting in a local coffee shop, Heitzmann, on a day off a while back and as I sat there and pondered this, in that moment I felt entirely secure in the idea. I didn't feel particularly emotional about it, but I envisioned myself in a completely bare room. There weren't any doors, windows, lights, furnishings, nothing. Just me and the knowledge that Jesus was enough. I'll admit that the idea of losing everything is certainly not a pleasant one. We know what a struggle it was for Job to go through that tragic time in his life. But if the world were taken away, could I answer, “Just give me Jesus”? I hope and pray so. The holiday season is coming on in full force, and being away from my family is not easy. I'm sure I will cry on Christmas, and perhaps other times as well. But I'm challenged to really ponder where I place my hope and joy. Is it my family, traditions, being comfortable, etc? Or is it my Lord and Savior? As I write this I am reminded of my Discipleship & Evangelism professor who strongly emphasized that in the Christian life we can't ignore any of the three Persons of God, so I don't want to neglect mentioning how all-important GOD is; Jesus, Holy Spirit, & Father. Can't have one without the others. I just wanted to share some of what's been on my heart lately.

Thanksgiving at Storch Dorm!

Since I mentioned holidays, I'll go ahead and tell you about our Dorm Thanksgiving. We celebrated American Thanksgiving last Thursday (a week early mostly due to Christmas Banquet being on this upcoming Saturday) in the dorms, and it was a great time! We were blessed to have turkey provided for us, but the rest was up to us and our dorm subs! At Storch we had mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole (a real treat seeing as sweet potatoes are hard to come by and expensive!), stuffing, jello salad, green salad, deviled eggs, green bean casserole, mac & cheese, crescent rolls, pumpkin pie, and apple pie. It was quite the feast! Lots of work in the kitchen, but worth it :) It was great to see the girls get so excited about it, and to be able to share this tradition with people that represent many different cultures. There is so much to be thankful for!

Mimi's Cathartic & Clothed Cuddling Club...hahaha

Yesterday the dorms all went to Basel, Switzerland (~30 mins from here) to go ice skating. It was a blast! I think it's awesome that Residence Life is able to host this type of event for our kids. Thank you to everyone who helps make it possible! Can't say that I'm much of an ice skater...been 3 times total now...but it was fun! I never fell, which is amazing really, although at one point I thought I was going to get body checked by Wayne Gretzky (yes, that is the only name in hockey that I know). Fortunately, little Wayno was a much better skater than I and veered off at the last possible second. Whew.

Would you like a spot of tea?

Remember how I said that November is sort of notorious around here as being the horrible, no good, very bad month? Well, so far it's not been half bad! And it's half over! Thanks for your prayers! We've been thinking of things to do with the girls to help lighten things up during the week, so a week or two ago I hosted a tea party in our dining room. It was pretty fun. They had to either wear a dress or a hat in order to attend, and we giggled over our British accents and lifted pinkies. I really love doing that sort of thing, so I was glad to have the opportunity to share it with my gals! There are just 4 weeks left until Christmas break, so please keep us all in your prayers as we anticipate the vacation time. Pray that the girls would be able to finish the semester strong, that they would get enough rest, and that they can keep their eyes on the Lord in the midst of everything. Thanks, friends.

John 11:25-26

“Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?'”