A great beginning to Christmas!!

We have some sweet friends who moved away to Alabama this summer. We miss them dearly and look forward to being with them again soon. They have always been generous and gracious friends, and this Christmas has not turned out any differently. Jason and Cayce, we love you guys and miss you and hope to see you soon!
~Karl, Kaley, Gabe, & Hallie

P.S. Last time in the car Hallie said, "Bye bye, see you later." We asked her where she was going and you know what she said? That's right, "ALABAMA!"

You Get What You Pay For

Listening to Eddie today at church I heard something I hadn't thought about before. He was challenging our idea of faith, and when we really have it. His sermon was from Matthew's account of Jesus calming the storm. He brought up the idea of when Jesus comes up and the guys are all freaking out, he calms the storm and then looks at his disciples and says, "Guys? What's the deal? Have you no faith?" (rough translation). Eddie asked us this question, "What does it take for you to have faith in Christ?" or something like that. Essentially, what has to happen for us to believe in Christ? Does he have to answer us everytime we call out in prayer? Does he have to heal every person we pray for, or show up at any moment he's called upon? What if he doesn't do what we ask him to do, does he deserve any less of our obedience?

The story of the calming of the storm is one where Jesus actually does a miracle, and yet seems to be rebuking the disciples for not having faith that he could, whether he did it or not. As if the only time they would agree to have faith in him was when they really didn't need it in the first place.

So it got me thinking, is this true for me? Am I waiting to really put my trust in Christ because he hasn't answered my "requests"? Is that really what I want my faith to be about? I can honestly say that I'd never thought of that, in that way before. I've never thought about how much I really do expect God to do what I want, and then when he doesn't "come through", I'm struggling with my faith. If I'm honest, that happens way more often than i'd care to admit. What's the point of having faith if you're never going to use it? I'll have to think some more about this one...thanks Eddie, my head hurts.

A new day has come

I woke up this morning with a smile on my face. It's hard to really believe what we were witness to last night, a truly historic thing, and watching the people in Grant Park, I couldn't help but smile and imagine what might be in the days, weeks, and months to come. I felt very proud to vote in this election, to be a part of helping our country move into a new day, with the first African American president, and to see that people from all races, economic backgrounds, etc had come together, united, because of a belief that working together we really can make a difference. I'm excited about the road ahead, looking forward to what's coming, trying to keep a realistic view of progress, but overall thankful for being alive at this time and in this place.

Like a cold glass of iced tea on a hot day

It's funny how God can remind you and speak to you often when you least expect it. Tonight I was surprised once again at his faithfulness as I listened to four of our students in LFC give their testimonies about how God is working in their lives. I have been excited about this night for awhile now, and even so, I was surprised at just how much God is working and how he always is. I don't know why it's so surprising to me, I believe He works, or at least I thought I did, but perhaps tonight was a reminder that believing and living it out are two different things. It's one thing to believe it, it's another to live as if it's true. I guess tonight I was reminded/challenged/confronted with the truth that I don't always live as though God is working in other people, my world seems to end at the end of my nose. But it was delightfully refreshing to get lost in the stories of God working in men and women who love him and want to live their lives to his glory. It was really refreshing. Lord, thanks for the grace and the love, for reminding me that this life is not about me, and how easily I can deceive myself into thinking it is. May you help me live tomorrow what I believe to be true in the depths of my heart, that you are living and active and at work in your people. I look forward to seeing your handiwork tomorrow!

Misc thoughts from inside...

Things have been a little crazy to say the least. We're in the midst of a new semester and tackling 1 Peter, I think a very appropriate letter to read for students at UT. I'm in and out of a funk over this Hurricane Ike thing. It's brought back a lot of memories from Katrina, and I've found that I'm struggling with a lot of emotions, and I wasn't even affected by it. I'm sad for all the people that have lost so much and now have nothing. I'm frustrated that so many people stayed behind and didn't get out when they had the chance. I'm sad and frustrated that so many had no friends or family to escape to, and I'm wondering why it seems like FEMA is not doing what it's supposed to do, why we can't get people food and water and tents. As you can tell, I'm all over the map with this stuff.

Anyway, one of the things that we're talking about from 1 Peter is about hope, and how we've been born again into a living hope. It's one thing to have hope when things are going well, when the stock market isn't plunging everyday, when there are no storms and no wars happening, when my little world is hitting on all cylinders. It's quite another to have hope when things are difficult, when times are hard, and nothing seems to be working.

I'm thankful for some conversations I've had lately with students about this very thing, about connecting with God and trusting that our faith in Him is real. I'm thankful for a God that's big enough to handle any question, and in the midst of hard times has promised to never leave us or forsake us. And I'm thankful for a community like LFC where we can be real with one another, we can have good and bad times, we can sing and eat and pray and watch football, where in the midst of life we can know that we're together.

And one last thing...I miss my friend Jason.

Another birthday!

Looks like right now all I"m good for is posting b-day stuff. Well, I'll try to do better in the future. Anyway, I have two birthday updates --- Hallie is 2 and Gabe is 4! Here are a few pics from our adventures, enjoy!