I know I haven't posted in a while so this will just be a general update on what's been going on with me and with my internship.
As you can see in the picture, I recently learned to knit! Several ladies at my internship congregation knit, as do a few of my friends, and they've all been encouraging me to try, so I finally gave in. It was a little slow going at first, because every time I made a mistake I had to wait until I saw the woman who is teaching me so she could fix it. Needless to say, I didn't make much progress for a while. But then she showed me how to fix my mistakes (the little ones, anyway) so things are moving along a little better now. I'm enjoying it so far, but I'm still pretty slow, so I have to be patient. It would be great if I could get a few scarves made before Christmas, but at this point I'll be happy if I can finish just this one! :)
We hosted a community Thanksgiving eve service at my internship congregation, and I was in charge of organizing it. It was not only ecumenical (more than one denomination) but also interfaith (more than one faith). We had clergy from Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, United Church of Christ, Episcopal, Roman Catholic, and Lutheran churches and we had an Imam from an Islamic center. Normally there would have been Jewish representation as well, but the Rabbi was unable to attend. It was awesome to have everyone worshipping together. It was a well-attended service and we received a lot of positive responses.
This was the first Thanksgiving that I did not spend with my family. Though I have a few days off, the drive from the Jersey shore back to Bville (and then to Ohio, where my family usually heads for the holiday) would have been too long to make for just a few days. I miss my family and I'm looking forward to heading home for the week between Christmas and New Years. Since I was an orphan for the day, a friend from my internship congregation invited me to have dinner with her family. We had all the traditional Thanksgiving fare and it was delicious.
Today I decided to brave the crowds and start my Christmas shopping. I waited to head out until about noon, because I figured all the crazy people who got going at 5am would either be leaving or stopping to have lunch by then. Though I did have to park like a mile away in the parking lot, and the mall was definitely busy, it wasn't too bad. The only long line I had to wait in was at my first stop, JCPenney, and I think it was mostly because their big sales were ending at 1pm. The lines at the other stores weren't bad at all, and by the time I left the mall and made it to Target, the crowds were thinning significantly. In addition to several gifts, I also got great deals on a pair of jeans and a couple seasons of "Friends" for myself. I think it was a successful outing.
May God bless you and your family.And may we remember in our prayers those who must go without.
Today I voted! By absentee ballot, of course. I wanted to post about it for a few reasons.
First, to encourage everyone to vote! I'm not going to tell you who to vote for, because everyone has the right to choose. I'm also not going to tell you in this post who I voted for, partly because working in a church makes things like that a little tricky. Most of you probably know anyway, but if you want to know, you can ask via email.
Second, because this is an historic election. I don't care who you support, you have to acknowledge that. And it's because of candidates for both major parties! We have an African American AND a woman on the ballot this year! Awesome. I have to admit, I got a little emotional when I was looking at my ballot.
Please take the opportunity to be part of history and VOTE. If you don't vote, you don't deserve to complain about the outcome. And if you're still undecided, my advice is to read about each candidates stand on the issues on each of their websites and make your decision based on what they have to say about themselves, NOT on what the other candidate says about them and the mudslinging that is occuring in both directions.
Whatever the outcome, the next president is going to have a tough job turning this country around. Pray for them. (BOTH of them.)
I baked an apple crisp from scratch!
Those of you who know me well know that I do not cook or bake often. However, last Saturday I engaged in a wonderful fall activity and went apple-picking with some friends and came home with a bag full of yummy Braeburn, Empire, and Golden Delicious apples (I like the sweet ones). Since I am just one person and would likely not be able to eat all the apples I brought home before they went bad, I decided to get domestic for a change and bake something. An apple crisp seemed to be the easiest to attempt. I used the recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. It turned out pretty well, if I do say so myself. Maybe not perfect, as I think the butter could have been blended better among the other topping ingredients, but I was satisfied.
See for yourself!
One month of internship down, eleven to go! It sounds like a lot still, but this first month or so has actually gone fairly quickly and I'm sure as I get even busier and start taking on more tasks at the church (like preaching, which I begin doing this Sunday!! pray for me!!) time will fly by.
With the arrival of October it's starting to feel a little more like fall. While summer remains my favorite season, I do appreciate fall for it's beautiful colors and delicious apple- and pumpkin-themed food and, of course, football season!
Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, I thought I would use this post to make readers aware (if you aren't already) of two very easy things you can do to help.
1. The Breast Cancer Site is a website where all you have to do is go and click and sponsors who advertise on their website will donate money to fund free mammograms for women who can't afford them. It's so easy, free, and takes maybe 30 seconds. I keep the site on my bookmarks toolbar and click on it several times a day. (There are also other causes you can click on, such as hunger and the environment.) www.thebreastcancersite.com
2. If you're a yogurt-lover like I am, make your yogurt choice this month Yoplait. If you save the pink lids and mail them in they donate money for each lid they receive to breast cancer research.
And don't forget, ladies, to get your yearly mammogram (once you hit 35/40) and remind the women in your life to do it too! (And while we're talking about cancer screening, tell your men, if they're over 40/50, to get a prostate exam!)
I've been reading a lot of great stuff lately, mostly books that I've either bought or added to my "must read" list over the past few years when I was taking classes and didn't have time to read anything other than assigned material. Here's a few great quotes I've come across...
A Generous Orthodoxy: Why I am a missional, evangelical, post/protestant, liberal/conservative, mystical/poetic, biblical, charismatic/contemplative, fundamentalist/calvinist, anabaptist/anglican, methodist, catholic, green, incarnational, depressed-yet-hopeful, emergent, unfinished Christian by Brian McLaren
[Quoting theologian David Bosch] "According to Bosch: 'We cannot point to any other way of salvation than Jesus Christ; at the same time, we cannot set limits to the saving power of God... We appreciate this tension, and do not attempt to resolve it.' This means that anathemas and damnation can be invoked rarely if at all, which will disappoint all who have grown accustomed to resolving the above paradox by means of their invocation... For the rest of us, rather than resolving the paradox via pronouncements on the eternal destiny of people more convinced by or loyal to other religions than ours, we simply move on (as Jesus told his disciples to do), giving all the respect and honor due those who are not convinced by our message (with the meekness Jesus taught), rather than calling down fire from heaven on them (as Jesus his disciples not to do)."
"If enough of us can bear the truth of our failures as Christians, if we can let that truth humble us and bring us from denial to sincere and profound repentance, if our hearts are made soft and responsive to the Holy Spirit through this painful but needed process, then there truly is hope in the midst of depression."
God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It by Jim Wallis
"The best public contribution of religion is precisely not to be ideologically predictable or a loyal partisan. To always raise the moral issues of human rights, for example, will challenge both left- and right-wing governments that put power above principles. Religious action is rooted in a much deeper place than 'rights' - that place being the image of God in every human being."
Telling the Truth: The Gospel as Tragedy, Comedy, & Fairy Tale by Frederick Buechner
"We are all of us Pilate in our asking after truth, and when we come to church to ask it, the preacher would do well to answer us also with silence because the truth and the Gospel are one, and before the Gospel is a word, it too like truth is silence - not an ordinary silence, silence as nothing to hear, but silence that makes itself heard if you listen to it the way Pilate listens to the silence of the man with the split lip."
"Truth itself cannot be stated. Truth simply is, and is what is, the good with the bad, the joy with the despair, the presence and absence of God... Before it is a word, the Gospel that is truth is silence, a pregnant silence in its ninth month, and in answer to Pilate's question, Jesus keeps silent, even with his hands tied behind him manages somehow to hold silence out like a terrible gift."
Walking on by.
I ran across this story/post on my favorite blog. I totally agree with PittGirl's thoughts on this one, and particularly appreciated her point at the end: "The moment we stop being affected by violent deaths is the moment we stop being human."
Then I read through the comments people posted in response. I was pretty annoyed with the people who likely do not, and never will, live in a neighborhood like the one in the story and think they know what they're talking about. Yes, the story likely has a lot of complexities to it, and yes, this is obviously a neighborhood that needs a lot of help and needs to get at the root causes of their problems. But my biggest problem here is that people are so quick to make a judgment on the situation and neighborhood and aren't dealing with the big issues. There's a person laying dying or dead on a sidewalk and nobody cares?! Where is the love for our neighbor? And if the people of that neighborhood see so many dead bodies that they're unaffected by one more, are we just going to accept that and move on with our own lives? Or are we going to make a difference in that neighborhood and in the world?
Where is the love?
I know I haven't posted in a while so this will just be a general update on what's been going on with me and with my internship.
