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Archive for November, 2008

Mr. Christmas

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

I love my Dave. And he loves Christmas.

For 28 Christmases now, he has worked hard, planned, created, wrapped, shopped, baked, played, decorated and done whatever else is necessary to create a magical, love-filled, memory-made Christmas for our family. Christmas mornings at our house are legendary feasts of extravagant indulgence and convivial love banquets of gifts and good smells and laughter and mountains of giftwrap and the music of Christmas and the love of the most incredible husband-father-grandfather. It isn’t about the money spent, for often there has been precious-little of that, but it’s the thoughtful generosity of spirit, gifts that remind the recipient: you are loved, cherished and appreciated-this is my token of that. But – wrap all of that in a huge Christmas bow and you have the gift of the season that my husband puts much great effort in to.

You are the original Clark Griswold, honey. You are George Bailey and Father O’Malley ringing the bells of Christmas. You are my handsome Jefferson Jones, my lover by tree-light. You are Kris Kringle and Santa Claus. You are the man described in “Holiday Inn” in the exchange between Jim Hardy and Miss Linda Mason (Bing Crosby and Marjorie Reynolds).

Linda: You’re a lot like my father – just a man with a family. Never amounted to much, never really cared. But as long as he was alive, we had food to eat and clothes to keep us warm.

Jim: Were you happy?

Linda: Very.

Jim: Well, then your father was a successful man. I hope I can do as well.

Yes, baby, you are Mr. Christmas. I love that you are. I love that you are ever-committed to making merry for all. I am smiling at how excited you are to be organizing the decorations – getting ready to haul them out in mere days. You know where everything is and you’re planning, with a twinkle in your eye, to give us yet another wonderful Christmas.

As the Carpenters once sang: Merry Christmas, Darling…Jeanie

From Dickens’ A Christmas Carol~

“…and it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that truly be said of us, all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, ‘God bless us, Every One!’”

NOTE TO SELF: Love the Christmas keeper.

characters above from some of our favorite Christmas movies, including: Christmas Vacation, It’s a Wonderful Life, The Bells of Saint Mary’s, Christmas in Connecticut, Miracle on 34th Street, Holiday Inn

pictured: sweet daughter, Stormie did the graphic for me, from a photo of Dave and a Bing Crosby album.

Tags: a christmas carol, bing crosby, charles dickens, christmas, christmas in connecticut, christmas movies, dave rhoades, holiday inn, it's a wonderful life, the belles of saint mary's
Posted in Keep Christmas, Love & Marriage, Memories & Melancholy, Mi Familia, My Most Unforgettable People, Songs I am Singing, Stuff I Actually Think, TV & Movies/Books & Entertainment | 7 Comments »

Javallujah!

Monday, November 10th, 2008

Thanks to my daughter, Stephanie (a devoted Starbucks customer) for this fun Starbucks/Church Parable

Raises these questions:

Why have so many doors if we are going to leave some locked – always the one the unsuspecting visitor tries to use???
How many cliches can you cram into one service?
How many consecutive years will the JOY acronym be used as a “current” church motto (I am counting at least 43 years already).

I love church. Really.

Tags: church, parable, starbucks
Posted in Home & Garden/Food & Seasons, Stuff I Actually Think | 3 Comments »

My Magoo

Monday, November 10th, 2008

Hunter’s mommy and daddy are off doing a ministry conference. For two whole days and nights he is mine, all mine. I keep him close. I listen to him set up “meetings” on an old cell phone with his little playmates. He thanks me profusely for the little “bed” I have created for him right next to me on the floor. Just as I am dozing off, I sense his little face close to mine. Leaning against the side of my bed with his head resting on his hands, he nonchalently starts a conversation as if it were 11:30 am instead of 11:30 pm.

“Do you want to cuddle for a few minutes?” I ask. “Yes, just for a few minutes, Nonna.” He climbs into bed and wraps his arms around me. We snuggle close, he is stroking my arm. I close my eyes and breathe him in – and wasn’t it just yesterday that his mommy was this little, this near? He is four and tomorrow he will be fourteen. I am memorizing the softness of his face on mine, of his raspy whisper talking about this and that and nothing at all.

A few minutes later I tuck him back in to his makeshift bed. I can see his long lashes in the moonlight. He will stay awake and watch me as long as I am watching him, so I know I must call it a night. I place my hand on his chest and pray over him – for God’s favor and blessing to rest on him. O God, make Your face to shine upon my little Hunter. Guide his steps, direct his path. God, bless my little man. Bless Him, Lord. Jesus, bless my Hunter! I cry out with intensity in the darkness. “Jesus bless you, Nonna!” Hunter finishes.

He has, Magoo. He has!…Hunter’s Nonna

NOTE TO SELF: Work on my Thanksgiving list of all the things I have to be grateful for, thankful for, don’t deserve…my list will be long.

pictured: Hunter with the mommy and daddy who are making him such a cool kid – jumping off a hay bail with total abandon; with his mom and dad; jumping off a train and being thrown 12 feet into the air-with glee!

Tags: dave and tara powers, grandchild, grandson, gratefulness, hunter powers
Posted in Mi Familia, My Most Unforgettable People, Stuff I Actually Think | 6 Comments »

Amy Jo Journeying Toward Heaven on the Sacred Romance

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

Yikeronis! In April, four friends: Heather, Candi, Amy Jo and me, set out to read and write our responses to the now-classic The Sacred Romance-Drawing Closer to the Heart of God by Brent Curtis and John Eldredge. We were going great guns for a time, but life and stuff jumped right in front of our momentum and we have never quite finished…yet. I published my thoughts to Chapter 12 about 2 months ago (see here). There is really just Chapter 12 and the epilogue left (wow! I LOVED the epilogue!), but, by golly, we are GOING to finish! Hopefully before the holidays…

Chapter Twelve: Coming Home

From the infamous, crazy artistic, wildly creative and sensitive Amy Jo:

“Our hearts cannot live without hope… Our courage for the journey so often falters because we’ve lost our hope of heaven-the consummation of our Love Story.” (p. 178)

“If I find in myself desires which nothing in this world can satisfy, the only logical explanation is that I was made for another world.” (C.S. Lewis, p. 180)

Ah… temporal ennui… my old “friend,” my frequent companion, my gift, my curse.

I, as Jeanie did, grew up with a heaven-focused crowd. I even had a lapel pin on the corkboard in my childhood bedroom that read “Perhaps Today.” Fittingly, it helped hold up a little poster that read (and yes, I’m typing this from memory):

“This world is not my home, although it seems to be. My home is with my God, in the place He’s made for me. He’s coming back real soon-the signs are very clear. So when the trumpet sounds, I’ll be out of here!”

Cute, huh? I liked it. But there is always the danger of being “so heavenly minded that we are of no earthly good.” This is a balance I struggle with because (contrary to popular belief) I do NOT always love life. I wrestle OFTEN with my “calling,” whatever that may be. I wonder ALWAYS what I’m supposed to be doing with my time here on earth. I do know however, that I am to love God and love people, using the gifts and personality God was pleased to give me. Here, let me quote for you the personal “Mission Statement” I wrote for myself in 2007:

“I want my life to be characterized-most of all-by love for God and love for people. Therefore I will seek to do so in as many ways as I can imagine and am able. Never will I allow myself to become embittered by what sorrows and perceived injustices I may experience in my journey through life. I vow to strive always to see, imitate, manufacture, and praise God for beauty. I always want to confidently protect and promote truth and light. I want to be proud of how I conduct myself in any given situation. When others spend time with me, I want them to leave feeling refreshed, invigorated, inspired, loved, and valued. I want to bring out the best in those around me. When God looks at me, I want Him to say, “She is mine. She knows me and loves me. I am pleased by her.”

The authors of The Sacred Romance call us to dream of heaven, imagining wildly about what heaven will offer our heart of hearts-beyond the clouds, fat white cherubs, harps, and boringness that has become so cliché in our culture. “If faith and love hang on hope, if a life without hope is as Paul says ‘to be pitied’ (1 Cor. 15:19), then shouldn’t we devote ourselves to recovering a vision for the end of our story in as vivid colors as our imagination can conceive?” (p.180) The authors urge us to consider these in our imaginings: intimacy, beauty, adventure, and arrival. I will highlight my favorite parts of each section.

On Intimacy: “There we shall receive our new name, known only to our Lover, which He shall give to us on a white stone (Rev. 2.17)… To tell the name is to seal the success-to say, ‘In thee also I am well pleased.” (p.183) How my heart longs to hear these words from my God! (See above Mission Statement.)

On Beauty: “So it goes with all things on earth: The beauty that so captures our heart and is so fleeting draws us toward the eternal reality.” (p.186) (See above Mission Statement.)

On Adventure: “We will worship God in heaven, meaning all of life will finally be worship, not round after round of ‘Amazing Grace’.” (p. 188) YAY! “Part of the adventure will be to explore the wonders of the new heaven and new earth, the most breathtaking of which will be God Himself. We will have all eternity to explore the mysteries of God, and not just explore, but celebrate and share with one another.” (p. 189)

On Arrival: “One day soon we will round a bend in the road and our dreams will come true. We really will live happily ever after. The long years in exile will be swept away in the joyful tears of our arrival home. Every day when we rise, we can tell ourselves, My journey today will bring me closer to home; it may be just around the bend. All we long for we shall have; all we long to be, we will be. All that has hurt us so deeply-the dragons and nits, the Arrows and our false lovers, and Satan himself-they will all be swept away. And then real life begins.” (p.193)

In closing my review of this chapter on heaven, I’d like to just put out a challenge to those of you who love music-try making a “Heaven Playlist” on your ipod or computer… or even just using pen and paper. There are SO many songs out there referencing heaven; so many songs out there produced out of-I am convinced-the calling of the Sacred Romance. Perhaps in creating / listening to your “Heaven Playlist” you will hear the call of our Romancer-and just MAYBE you will begin to break free from our “modern” boring ideas of heaven. Here are a few I’d recommend to get you started:

“What Do I Know?” by Sara Groves, from Conversations
“My Deliverer” and “That Where I Am, There You…” by Rich Mullins, from The Jesus Record
“I Can Hear the Angels Singing” by David Crowder Band, from B Collision
“The Third Heaven” by Carmen, from Addicted to Jesus
“Un Lugar Celestial” (A Heavenly Place) by Jaci Velasquez, from Heavenly Place

Thanks, Amy Jo. LOVE you!…Jeanie

NOTE TO SELF: Learn to be more imaginative about heaven. I CAN only imagine…

pictured: Amy Jo created the prayer and worship interactives for Heaven Fest this past summer.

Tags: amy jo, book review, friends, heaven, John Eldredge
Posted in JESUS, Lover of My Soul, Songs I am Singing, Stuff I Actually Think | 1 Comment »

Just Like Daddy

Wednesday, November 5th, 2008

Gavin drops in for a quick hello just before he goes to Kindergarten today. He is sporting a faux-hawk and asks me what I think, as he carefully touches the pointed tips of his hair to make sure it has remained where it was carefully coiffed and coaxed with gel to remain.

You look so cool, Gavin. I love your hair!

He peels off his coat, exhuberantly explains, “Look, Nonna! I have on two shirts!” He reveals a black t-shirt under a long-sleeved, vertically striped, button-down, dress shirt. I respond with appropriate glee at how good he looks.

“I have two shirts,” he finishes his thought. “Just like my daddy.” A resolute nod of his head along with a knowing look and the gentle smile on his lips - and I know that today, in this moment, Gavin has attained his highest and most precious goal: to be just like his daddy.

And I think of Tristan and quickly thank God that Gavin has a daddy worth emulating. He is becoming remarkable, just like his unusually remarkable father.

How full can one heart get?…Jeanie

NOTE TO SELF: Make my highest goal – to be like Father

Tags: gavin, grandchild, love, tristan
Posted in Mi Familia, My Most Unforgettable People, Stuff I Actually Think | 9 Comments »

Prayer for the Nation

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

It’s November 4. It’s election day. Before we go to bed tonight, we will most likely know who our next president will be and we’ll spend the next several days sorting out who all got elected and where and the talking heads will tell us what they think the next 4 years will look like. It would be easy to fall in to fear on a day like this. We become so impassioned about our candidate, so certain he or she is the only way and must certainly be God’s way. I wrote about it before.

Now don’t kill me for saying this, but: the collective vote of the people is NOT always the right one, the best choice for the nation. But it is the choice we have made, collectively. And since we want our democratic society, we have to roll with happens – that is part of getting to participate in the process. This makes Christians who rip leadership apart instead of praying for them humbly, just as guilty and stupid as the celebrities who claim they’ll leave the country if their candidate doesn’t win the election.

What? No democracy?!? Saul and David are good indicators of this. When God alone wanted to rule His people, they wanted a king (to be like other nations). So, God let them have the one they wanted. He was tall and good looking and popular and a warrior. He was the obvious choice. And God used Saul, in spite of himself. But he was never God’s choice (because God knows the heart) and Saul’s actions exposed the deep lack of character inside. Whereas, David wasn’t the obvious choice, but God knew he had the right heart to lead the people.

But in the end? Still – God’s people! His.

I voted. And tomorrow, come what may, the Word still calls me to pray:

“I urge then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone – for kings and all those in authority, that we made lead peaceful and quiet lives in all godiness and holiness.” 1 Tim. 2.1-2

So, I pray for all of our leaders, both freshly elected and remaining:

I pray for the leaders of my nation to come to the light. Isaiah 60.3
God, let our leaders be just and let them rule in the fear of the Lord. 2 Samuel 23.3
May we, as a nation, praise You, Lord, for Your merciful kindness and truth. Psalm 117
Turn our leader’s hearts to fear You, Lord. Proverbs 21.1
God, I pray that we, as a nation, will make a joyful noise to You and serve You with great gladness! Psalm 110.1-2
Uproot the wicked from our land, Lord. Proverbs 2.22
We pray that our nation will submit to the reign and rule of Christ. Daniel 7.14
May Your governement and peace continually increase in my nation. Isaiah 9.7
I make supplication, petition, prayer, intercession and give thanks for ALL the people of my nation and especially today for all the leaders of this nation. 1 Timothy 2.1-2
Hear us from heaven, we ask, as we humbly pray and call out to You. We repent of our wickedness, God. Forgive our sins. Heal our land.
Your Kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.

God bless America!…Jeanie

NOTE TO COUSIN DIANA: Happy Birthday!

Tags: Bible, david, poliics, pray for leaders, presidential election, saul
Posted in JESUS, Lover of My Soul, Stuff I Actually Think | 3 Comments »

Falling Back and the Delicious “Extra Hour”

Sunday, November 2nd, 2008

Daylight Savings Time and the practice of setting clocks back one hour in the fall and forward one hour in the spring (fall back, spring forward!) does not bug me nearly as much as it did at one time.

Soon after we were married we lived in Kokomo, IN where they did not observe Daylight Savings Time, so when the rest of the world changed, we just defiantly stayed put. And primetime programming for us was 8-11 pm, and the ten o’clock news came on at 11. We were out of sync with the rest of the nation for 6 months out of the year, as if we were defending some right to religious freedom? THAT was weird! AND you could always count on your lowest church year attendance with that “lost hour” each spring when we pastored. Very troubling. This is why, you’ll notice, churches are the greatest trumpeters bar none, of the whole clock-setting, time-changing ordeal!

But no, I am not troubled by it now like in the old days. Now I am only aggravated by every single time-related conversation for at least a week after the time change being some thing like:

Me: What time is it?

Other person: It is ____ o’clock…but REALLY it is ____ o’clock!

Yes, people want to tell me what time it would have been if Daylight Savings Time had not just upset our entire universes by one hour. I’m pretty sure I could calculate that on my own, if I ever needed to. But it did change, people, it did! Roll with it.

Now, in the fall, I relish in the wondrous thought of an extra hour. This morning I am up pondering how to be a worshiper who can bring God joy by my praises, my song, my love. I have just been sitting here lazily in the dark loving Him and bouncing ideas off of Him for some upcoming things while drinking my Rocky Mountain Thunder (dark roast by Boyer’s).

We never have enough time, yet – today, we get an extra hour. This is wonderful. This is a miracle. This is a gift: An hour of time to spend any way we want.

Enjoy yours…Jeanie

NOTE TO SELF: The question is not “what time is it?” but “what is it time for?”