For All Practical Purposes.

When you graduate college, you tend to spend a lot more time "getting on with life" and a lot less time conversing with friends. This a change I have not enjoyed adjusting to. Not one bit.

One of the things that bothers me is how when I get the chance to see a friend or talk to them on the phone we spend most of our time catching up on what we're doing in life. Suddenly my life seems so stagnant. Suddenly I feel like I don't know my friends anymore, or maybe it's more that I just feel like a bad friend because I don't know what is happening their life all the time like I did in college. Distance tests the endurance of friendship. It's not convenient anymore.

I spent half of my day today hanging out with 3 Russian kids. Artum, Will, and Reagan. A good family friend adopted them about 2 1/2 years ago.... the oldest, Artum, is 15 years old. Reagan, the girl, is the youngest, and boy does she shoot fire when she talks! Today she asked me if I was in high school or college.... and when I told her I just graduated colleged she said, "And you're not married?!?! Why aren't you married?!?! Don't you have a boyfriend?!?!" Hah. In case you haven't guessed, she's not very shy. Will is, in my opinion, the sweetest of the siblings. He is kind, helpful, more mild-tempered (he seems to have less hot Russian blood running through his veins), and has a good sense of humor. I spent 4 hours playing Wii with Artum. Way too much time playing Wii, but all in all it was a fun day! They are spending the night tonight - so I will probably get to spend a little more time with them tomorrow on my lunch break.

That last paragraph was a major side note to what I really started writing this about.

I thought I'd give you all a look into my weekly schedule. Maybe the next time we talk on the phone or run into each other, we won't have to spend our entire conversation talking about what we're doing and actually just BE together. Also, this might give you a better idea as to when I'm free to hang out or talk on the phone! So, here goes:

Sunday - 8:15-11:45 lead worship at church
1:15-2:00 my precious rest & relaxation time
2:15-4:45 volleyball at Brookside
5:30-10:00 work at the church*

Monday - 8:00-5:00 work at Sauder Feeds
6:30-??? work at the church*

Tuesday - 8:00-5:00 work at Sauder Feeds
6:45-10:15 volleyball at Brookside

Wednesday - 8:00-1:30 work at Sauder Feeds
3:00-9:00 work at the church/rehearsals

Thursday - DAY OFF (clean house, practice music, be lazy)*

Friday - 8:00-1:30 work at Sauder Feeds
3:00-??? work at church OR begin the weekend!*

Saturday - a.m. - finish up any final details for Sunday
p.m. - 2nd official DAY OFF!*

* These times are the best to reach me by phone!

Oh yeah, for those of you who don't know... the reason I spend so much time at the church working is because I was hired as Crossview Church's new worship leader in October! As you can see, I put in a lot of time at the church.... I've been working hard to organize our very chaotic music library with the hopes of eventually increasing productivity, decreasing the amount of paper we use making copies because we can't find music, and creating an organized library so that the new worship leader that comes in after me will be able to jump right into the position without worrying about doing this tedious and time-consuming task. While I only get paid for 15 hours of work a week, I don't mind putting in more than that... the fact that I'm getting paid at all to do MUSIC is such a blessing. I find that I've been more joyful in the past few months because I'm not only doing something that God has given me the gifts to do, but also something I'm passionate about. Sure there are new stresses with a new job, but it's been really good. While I never saw myself becoming a worship leader, I know this is where God wants to use me right now, and that He is using it as a way to help me grow closer to Him. The verse I put in my profile has sort-of stuck with me through this new experience of working on staff at a church:

"God has given each of you a gift... Use them well to serve one another."
- 1 Peter 4:10



Who to pray for today:
- The country of Russia, and Amy Laur, one of my closest friends from Taylor who is doing the YWAM program in Perm, Russia. Spending time with the Russian kids today reminded me of her and her ministry there. She is doing her 2 months of outreach right now in another country. Pray for the people of Russia, and specifically the people that Amy has been and will continue to be meeting. If you'd like to read about her experiences in Russia, you can visit her blog at: http://amylaur87.blogspot.com/.