Twenty Twelve

For some reason I didn’t give much thought to the fact that yesterday was the last day of the year.  Maybe it’s because once you enter the working world, New Year’s Eve feels pretty much just like any other Saturday night.  I did, however, start yesterday, December 31, 2012, by Instagram-ing the following picture and accompanying caption:

At the time, it was just another beautiful sunrise over Mt. Washington and an obvious choice for a witty remark.

But as the rhythms of closing out a year played on around me, I felt the Lord tell me that I really do need to do some “telling”.

“I will recount the steadfast love of the Lord, the praises of the Lord, according to all that the Lord has granted us, and the great goodness to the house of Israel that he has granted them according to his compassion, according to the abundance of his steadfast love.” (Isaiah 63:7)

And so I want to proclaim some of what the Lord has done this year.  Some of what He has taught me.  Some of the places He has taken me.  Some of the blessings He has given me.

Granted, each of the 365 days of this year was a gift, so this list is not nearly comprehensive.  But let us give Him praise! 

In 2012, the Lord…

Strengthened my relationships with Thomas, MK, and Pete despite the four of us being the furthest we’ve ever been from each other (physically).  He allowed us to text, ask advice, laugh, fight, and be an encouragement to one another.

Gave me wonderfully valuable time with the “Oxygenites”—my first and enduring community of brothers and sisters in Christ.

Taught me, through experience, more than I ever knew about spiritual warfare.  He helped me learn how to equip myself with the armor of God.  I learned how to truly FIGHT through my emotions and circumstances and stand on the truth of God’s word.

Led me through a difficult season of anxiety, depression, and a general feeling that I had lost myself and had no control over my emotions and reactions.  He brought me wise counsel, gracious friends and family, and freed me to accept God’s sovereign control over my life.  (I am still learning how to give Him that control each day.)

Cultivated in me a deep love for Scripture.  Most days now I long to read His Word!

Provided me with my first full-time, big-girl job with a salary.

Through a string of summer weddings and God’s grace, allowed me to see my family a lot.  Gave me new appreciation for the relationships that will always be there, and taught me about treasuring the short times I get with them.

Let me move back to the city (complete with a Pittsburgh mailing address) after a nine-month stint in Sewickley.  I fell in love all over again with the skyline, narrow streets with lots of people, and 376 East and West.

Gave me precious time with both sets of my grandparents.  Helped me realize how incredibly blessed I am to have generations of family members who value teaching their kids how to serve the Lord.

Gave me the opportunity to be a bridesmaid two times over!  Blessed me with rich, long-lasting friendships and so many earthly symbols of His commitment to us.

Opened my eyes to more of the spiritual realities around me, largely in part from writing in my new blog.

Brought me new and unexpected friendships with people of different ages, backgrounds, and life stages and encouraged my soul through each one of them.

Let me go on some dates; taught me new things about myself and how to like myself more.  Gave me the privilege of being served.

Provided me humbling opportunities to lead others in worship—puhhhhrayyyyze HIM!

Gave me new appreciation for His creation and sunlight by allowing me to fall in like with running (wouldn’t quite call it “falling in love”). 

All glory and honor to Him in 2012, 2013, and forever!  I am so thankful :)

A (Post) Christmas Carol

Is it too late for another Christmas post?  KLove is still playing the Christmas tunes and New Years is kind of like a fake holiday, so I think I’m okay.

This Christmas I had two different encounters with A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.  The story is one that I always assumed I knew because it’s such a classic, but I realized this year that all I really knew about the story is that there’s a guy named Scrooge who says “bah humbug”, and I watched Melissa Zimmerman (when she was a Walters) in a theater production of the story when we were in about ninth grade.

Also, when it comes to fictional characters who hate Christmas, everything starts to blur together with The Grinch.

Needless to say, I really had no idea what A Christmas Carol is about.  This year, I got educated after our family went through a walking tour of A Christmas Carol exhibit in Philadelphia and later when we gathered around on Christmas Eve to watch the made-for-TV movie recreation of the story.  Despite the fact that we waited over an hour in line to see the exhibit, and the movie took some frightening liberties in depicting certain characters:

…becoming acquainted with the story opened my eyes to a number of Spiritual realities.

For those (like me) who don’t really know the story, here are the highlights (spoiler alert...but seriously, the book was written in 1843, so if no one has spoiled it for you by know, they need to):

A man named Ebenezer Scrooge hates Christmas.  He says “bah humbug” a lot (which I can only assume is the 1843 translation of “Ughhhhh >:-/”).  He lives only for his business and making money.  One night before Christmas, a ghost of Scrooge’s old business partner, Jacob Marley (who died seven years prior), visits Scrooge and warns him to change his selfish and greedy ways.  When he lived, Marley had the same negative attitude as Scrooge, and he warns Ebenezer that it has haunted him after death.  Scrooge is then visited by three spirits—the Ghost of Christmas Past who takes him back to his childhood, the Ghost of Christmas Present who shows him various people in his town who live humbly but have great joy, and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come who shows him what the world will be like if Scrooge doesn’t change.  The visits with the ghosts are enough to convince Scrooge that there is more to life than his business, and in turn, he renews his attitude to be generous and enthusiastic about life.

Allusions to Scripture are all throughout the story:

“Darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it.” –A Christmas Carol

“But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.” (John 11:10)

.....

“There are some upon this earth of yours,' returned the Spirit, 'who lay claim to know us, and who do their deeds of passion, pride, ill-will, hatred, envy, bigotry, and selfishness in our name; who are as strange to us and all our kith and kin, as if they had never lived. Remember that, and charge their doings on themselves, not us.” –ACC

“Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” (Matthew 7:22)

.....

“‘You fear the world too much,' she answered gently. 'All your other hopes have merged into the hope of being beyond the chance of its sordid reproach. I have seen your nobler aspirations fall off, one by one, until the master passion, Gain, engrosses you.’” –ACC

"No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth." (Matthew 6:24)

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“‘Come in!’ exclaimed the Ghost. ‘Come in! and know me better, man!”… ‘I am the Ghost of Christmas Present,’ said the Spirit. ‘Look upon me!’…‘Touch my robe!’” –ACC

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28)

“When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, ‘If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.’” (Mark 5:27-28)

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This year, Christmas has come and gone.  But the call to “come and know” Jesus is a daily one.  Each day I should try to know Him better than yesterday.  I should, by His grace, be more righteous than the day before.  There is hope in Christ to be the person I was made to be.

Scrooge had the life-altering chance to see what his life would be like if he continued in darkness; Jesus came so that we would not even have to dream of darkness.  Let us continue, each day, in the light as He is in the light.

“God bless us, every one!” –Ebenezer Scrooge

A Christmas Experience

Well…it’s been awhile!  I have, ashamedly, been off my blogging grind.  I wish I could say I have been taking this time to “lean in” to personal revelation and privately “unpack” some of the deep longings of my heart.

Truthfully…I’ve just been working.  A lot.  And here I am, in my cubicle, with a virtual and literal inbox (yes, people still have those) that can just never seem to stay empty.  But it’s 4:01pm the Friday before Christmas, the first snow of the season is falling outside, and my Spirit is telling me it’s time to step back.  (Honestly, I’ve been ignoring those words from the Spirit lately.)

Last night my best friends (@mkzekert, @tomlebo, @petehutchison) drove across the state to spend a few days with me in Pittsburgh and bring me back home for the long holiday weekend.  Simply being together is always enough to put our souls in peaceful places, but this weekend we are especially looking forward to:

A PITTSBURGH CHRISTMAS EXPERIENCE.

We have been referring to ourselves as “elves” ever since this trip was planned.  We packed silly Christmas sweaters.  Tonight we’ll go ice skating and tour the International Santa exhibit before walking around downtown to see the lights and the life-size nativity scene—in the snow.  Last night we stood at the top of Mount Washington and counted how many Christmas trees we could see in the city.  We took pictures with the (creepy) life-size Santa and Mrs. Claus in the grocery store.  I even got eggnog and peppermint stick frozen yogurt just because it seemed like…the Christmas experience.

I love these things.  I love friends who do them with me.  I think gradually over the last two years since graduating college, I’ve let my life become less fun—I need Christmas experiences to reclaim that fun.

But as trite as it is, at now 4:14pm on the Friday before Christmas, I am reminded that none of these things are the true Christmas experience.  I think we all know that Christmas isn’t about gifts or holiday parties or cookie trays (except when you work in the food distribution industry).  But we do let ourselves believe that it’s about family, that feeling you get when sitting next to a warm fire with snow falling outside, and being together with the people you love.

Really, it’s about none of those things either.

The Christmas experience is humility: Sovereign God coming to us—the people who rejected Him.  And our choice to lay everything at His feet, admitting that we need Him.

Last week as I was walking by the ice skating rink downtown, I heard the song “O Come All Ye Faithful” playing.  I stopped for a second to listen to the lyrics:

O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord!

Couples and families glided around the large Christmas tree, seemingly unaware of the most beautiful and powerful invitation that has ever been given—the invitation to adore the humble King who saved us.  The scene was so ironic…kind of like our Lord being born in a manger.

Thank you, God, for letting me know your Son, and may my inbox and Starbucks red Christmas cups never keep me from that experience.

Merry Christmas!

Romans 12

{In view} of God’s mercy…

Do not conform to the pattern of this world…

Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought

think of yourself with sober judgment…

Each member belongs to all the others…

If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy

if it is serving, then serve;

if it is teaching, then teach;

if it is to encourage, then give encouragement;

if it is giving, then give generously;

if it is to lead, do it diligently;

if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

LOVE must be SINCERE.

Hate what is evil; #cling to what is good.

Be devoted to one another

in love.

Honor one another                  above yourselves.

__Be joyful in hope__

____patient in affliction­­____

______faithful in prayer______

SHARE with the Lord’s people who are in need.

Practice hospitality…

bless and do not curse.

Rejoice with those who rejoice;

mourn with those who mourn.

LIVE in HARMONY with one another.

Do not be proud…

Do not be conceited.

Do not repay anyone evil for evil…

If it is possible, AS FAR AS IT DEPENDS ON YOU,

live

at peace

with everyone…

Do not be overcome by evil,

but overcome evil with good.

Flight

About a week ago my dad sent me this email.  I have never known my dad to be a writer--before now.  I am blessed that I continue learning from my dad, and I'm beyond honored to post his thoughts below:

Allison,

I am not nearly the blogger that you are nor can I articulate life experiences in to creative prose like you do regularly, but I had a very unique experience on my flight to San Diego last night that made me think of you and how you relate life experiences to what God is trying to tell you.

I had a 5:55pm flight to San Diego from Philadelphia for a “business trip” to visit our office, attend an industry meeting, and play a round of golf at the very prestigious Torre Pines golf club.  I was just slightly disappointed to find out that I was not upgraded to first class as I sometimes am, however, I was #2 on the standby-for-upgrade list should someone cancel.  That put me in a preferred seat/row of 5C.  As the plane was boarding I would study each arriving passenger to determine if they would be taking the center seat next to me.  Both the center and window seat remained unoccupied for an unusually long time.  As the departure time grew near, my thoughts shifted to “good – the middle seat will be open for this long trip making it much more comfortable”.  Just prior to closing the door of the plane, the gate agent accompanied a woman who looked to be perhaps in her 70’s on to the plane.  From first glance I would venture to guess that most people, including myself, pegged her as being homeless by the way she was dressed.  She was African American, very short with 2 wool ski caps on her head.  She wore a down parka, long embroidery type dress/skirts, white sox which were half way up the calf, printed sneakers, and she walked with a stick. Literally an old broom handle type stick.  What struck me about her, however, was that she was very clean and did not smell like a homeless person.  As the gate agent approached, he motioned to me that her seat was the window seat in my row.   He motioned to her to take her seat and said to me, “She does not speak any English”.  As I looked into her face I saw with more detail a woman who appeared to be in the category of a “mountain person”.  I recall from the trip Mom and I took to Morocco that there are people who live isolated in the mountains.  This is what I would have pictured.  The woman could have been on the cover of National Geographic or pictured in a world cultures book.  Her skin was leathery.  She only had a blank stare as if she could not even understand basic hand gestures or non-verbal communication.  What a contrast in worlds which came together on the same row of a plane.  Here I am, pecking away on my handheld electronic device that has me theoretically connected to the world and yet the person right next to me lives in the same world that I cannot connect to.  I cannot even begin to imagine the world that God created for her in comparison the world he created for me.  She was now placed into “my world” by traveling on this plane.   It made me also realize how scary a position this must be for her by not speaking the language – but even beyond that, the fact that she seemingly cannot even gesture to communicate.  With all of the regulations for flying, how is she going to possibly make this trip not knowing about seatbelts or turbulence or complementary beverages or USAIRWAYS Master Cards?……..Then there was a shift in this thinking as she reached over and took me by the hand.  She looked into my eyes.  There was a pause of maybe 4-5 seconds during which time we were both probably wondering in our own unspoken languages, “What is happening?”.  Then she uttered the most universal words known to mankind.  In a very low and very soft voice, while staring right at me with eyes that were from such a far away place….she said, “Pee pee”.  Well, there was no denying her predicament.  The problem was that, in my world, the captain had already ordered the door of the aircraft to be closed, which meant there was no movement allowed in the aircraft until we reached cruising altitude.  We were about to be on an active taxiway and the FAA has very strict rules about cabin movement in this mode of the flight.  How could I communicate this?  Knowing personally that flying with a full bladder is not pleasant, I motioned to the flight attendant that I needed some assistance.  I told her that the woman spoke no English but that it seemed clear to me that she needed to use the restroom.  The flight attendant was very understanding and agreed that the only humane thing to do was to break the rules of the FAA and allow her to proceed to the bathroom while we were on an active taxi-way.  Not only that – she agreed to let her through barrier that separates the first class from the rest of the world (not sure why they really need to do that since you can see right through the curtain).  However, the flight attendant allowed the woman to use the first class lavatory.  Well…what a further contrast in worlds colliding.  Just minutes before the door of the aircraft was closed, a very “normal” looking English speaking traveler was denied access to the first class lavatory and told to go to the rear of the aircraft to use the restroom. 

The flight attendant accompanied the woman to the lavatory and then returned her to her seat.  The attendant  put the seatbelt on for the woman and motioned that she needed to remain seated.  Again, I was wondering if the woman really understood. 

The flight was smooth in the beginning but encountered turbulence about one hour in to the flight.  We were both dozing in and out of sleep and the woman appeared to not be concerned, even though the pilot had to make several announcements about the “rough air” we were experiencing. 

As we made preparations for landing, the plane began to do the “normal” things a plane does when landing.  Noises were different, pitches and rolls were different, and pressure on your ears was different.  Again with no way to reassure or communicate, I had to rely on hand gestures to try and convey that everything is okay.  Just receiving a blank stare from these gestures again made me realize that the worlds we are from are so far apart, yet here we are, in the same place, at the same time.  When the wheels touched down there was once again an opportunity for a communication connection.  Although I have no proof of this statement, it seems that when someone is scared they usually have a similar response.  As the wheels hit the ground, the woman immediately took my arm in hers and grabbed to hold my hand.  I squeezed, as did she, and I clutched our hands with my other hand to hopefully communicate that everything would be okay.  I continued to hold her hand, rough and leathery yet firm, through the entire taxi process.  She did not let go.  Then, as the plane was entering its final turn to match up with the jetway, I motioned to her to open the window shade which had been closed the entire flight.  As she gazed out at the lights and technology she seemed relieved that we have made it.  She gradually released my hand, and we shared another stare. 

The passengers were deplaning, and she seemed content to remain in her seat. I waved goodbye knowing that this chance meeting of our lives would never happen again, but it was at that moment that I was again struck by God’s prompting for a learning moment.  The woman did not return my wave.  That gesture was not familiar to her, and she had no reaction but to stare.   I was about to continue on this journey I began which was now going to take me to high rise hotels, fancy restaurants, posh golf courses and people who knew my language.  Where would she go?  Who would she communicate with?  In what world did she live?  So much to ponder.

The flight attendant assured me that they were watching over her and would accompany her to continue her journey. 

This was a life changing impression for me.  More introspection required.

New

This morning I took a new route to work.  It was so life-giving! (on a Monday morning, sometimes it’s the little things…)

With each passing traffic light, I tried to decide why it felt so good to drive by new trees, new streets, and new Eat ‘N Parks.  The way I drove to work this morning is much more residential than what I typically drive, so I passed by a number of kids on their way to the bus stop or school.  No doubt, this was part of why I loved it—watching kids in their Hollister t-shirts lug their saxophones across the sidewalk (I couldn’t decide if I miss those days or not).

But, I remembered—this is why I really loved the new drive:

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

Newness is from Christ!  All joy that I experience in new things flows from that truth.  I am new.  Now.

Eat a new cereal today.  Try a new hairstyle.  Talk to a new colleague.  And “behold, He is making all things new” (Revelation 21:5).

Posers, Not Politics

I remember in elementary school one of the biggest insults you could give was to call someone a “poser”.

E.g. “William copied the teacher’s example from class…what a POSER!”

E.g. “I accidentally got the same shoes as Felicity…I feel like such a poser!”

We were soooo young.

The insult gets at an American principal—one that even elementary kids can articulate, apparently—no one wants to be seen as a copy-cat, a people-pleaser.  The goal is to be yourself, unique, original.

The Bible talks about avoiding people-pleasing, too, but not in the interest of not being called a “poser”—in the interest of pleasing God:

“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10)

This is a capstone Sunday School memory verse.  Don’t worry about what people think.  Aim to please God.  Close in prayer.  Let’s go play on the playground.

So I was kind of startled last night when I read these words from Paul (the same guy who said the words above):

“Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the church of God—even as I try to please everyone in every way.  For I am not seeking my own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.” (1 Corinthians 10:32-33)

Uh.  Is Paul flip-flopping (is that a political joke? (Is it from 2004?) (I know nothing about politics))?

Honestly, not sure (and still know nothing about politics).  But the verses in 1 Corinthians draw out a wonderful, counter-cultural point for me:

To the extent that we are not engaging in sin or disobedience to God, we should do whatever it takes satisfy people in the interest of them meeting Christ.  In seeking to rescue souls, we should “become all things to all people” (1 Corinthians 9:22).

Wear business suits with the people who wear business suits.  Drink wine with the people who drink wine.  Paint watercolors with the people who paint watercolors (do people still do that?).

If it allows for an opportunity to overflow the love of Jesus Christ on to someone—be a poser.  Felicity will thank you.