I have to say that I was clearly distracted this morning at church, but that all changed as we moved into the baptism part of the service. Many of the first to be baptized were children and then the adults. There were two baptisms that brought tears to my eyes. The first one was a middle school girl whose parents had recently divorced.
The second person that caught my attention was a man who had just begun to recognize what was really important in his life when his wife told him that she was filing for divorce.
My heart broke so much for these two people who were coming from two different situations, but both being washed by the redeeming waters of the baptismal. I know from personal experience how hard a divorce can be, but I also know that while one chapter in their life is "ruined," the story of their life is not over. I came to realize this several years ago when I realized that my circumstances didn’t dictate who I was going to be and that the saving power of Jesus can give new life.
As I think about divorce, one of the songs that has resonated with me over the years is Wonderful by Everclear. It’s a great song that speaks to the pain that divorce causes. What this song fails to do is show that life does go on and that things do get better.
Wonderful
Everclear
I close my eyes when I get too sad
I think thoughts that I know are bad
Close my eyes and I count to ten
Hope it’s over when I open them
I want the things that I had before
Like a Star Wars poster on my bedroom door
I wish I could count to ten
Make everything be wonderful again
Hope my mom and I hope my dad
Will figure out why they get so mad
Hear them scream, I hear them fight
They say bad words that make me wanna cry
Close my eyes when I go to bed
And I dream of angels who make me smile
I feel better when I hear them say
Everything will be wonderful someday
Promises mean everything when you’re little
And the world’s so big
I just don’t understand how
You can smile with all those tears in your eyes
Tell me everything is wonderful now
Please don’t tell me everything is wonderful now
I go to school and I run and play
I tell the kids that it’s all okay
I laugh aloud so my friends won’t know
When the bell rings I just don’t wanna go home
Go to my room and I close my eyes
I make believe that I have a new life
I don’t believe you when you say
Everything will be wonderful someday
Promises mean everything when you’re little
And the world is so big
I just don’t understand how
You can smile with all those tears in your eyes
When you tell me everything is wonderful now
No
No, I don’t wanna hear you tell me everything is wonderful now
No
No, I don’t wanna hear you tell me everything is wonderful now
I don’t wanna hear you say
That I will understand someday
No, no, no, no
I don’t wanna hear you say
You both have grown in a different way
No, no, no, no
I don’t wanna meet your friends
And I don’t wanna start over again
I just want my life to be the same
Just like it used to be
Some days I hate everything
I hate everything
Everyone and everything
Please don’t tell me everything is wonderful now…
I don’t wanna hear you tell me everything is wonderful now
I’ve been looking for some new music lately and couldn’t really find anything that interested me. So I did what I normally do when this happens, I looked through my music library and started to look for new music from artists I already have. I was pretty happy to stumble across this song by Dave Barnes, I hope you enjoy!
God Gave Me You
Dave Barnes
I’ve been a walking heartache
I’ve made a mess of me
The person that I’ve been lately
Ain’t who I wanna be
But you stay here right beside me
Watch as the storm goes through
And I need you
God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
For when I think I’ve lost my way
There are no words here left to say, it’s true
God gave me you
There’s more here than what were seeing
A divine conspiracy
That you, an angel lovely
Could somehow fall for me
You’ll always be love’s great martyr
Ill be the flattered fool
and I need you
God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
For when I think I’ve lost my way
There are no words here left to say, it’s true
God gave me you
On my own I’m only
Half of what I could be
I can’t do without you
We are stitched together
And what love has tethered
I could baby, never undo
God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
God gave me you for the ups and downs
God gave me you for the days of doubt
For when I think I’ve lost my way
There are no words here left to say, it’s true
God gave me you, gave me you.
Gave me you.
This time of year at Grace is always a bittersweet one for me. First off, we get to be a satellite site for the Willow Creek Leadership Summit, which is awesome. But it’s a little bitter because it marks the end of the summer for our interns.
For me, it reminds me of my summer as an intern at Grace in 2007, and little did I know that it would be a new beginning for me.
Where I was in life
When I started my internship at Grace, I was nearing a turning point in my life. I was about halfway through my degree program and had been working at Marsh for the past eight years. I had applied to be JD’s intern for the summer, mostly doing web site related stuff and had hoped to cram in some of my school internship requirements along the way. Well, I didn’t fulfill my school’s internship requirements, but I still had a great summer!
The fun of being an intern
The great thing about the internship program was the leadership of Aaron and Linda. They did a killer job making us feel welcome. One of my greatest memories from my intern summer was the retreat we went on. I had been struggling with anxiety disorder over the past eight years and up until that point had never spent the night away from my house, nor did I let anyone drive me anywhere. It’s funny looking back now and seeing how those obstacles kept me from so many things, but I can only rejoice in the fact that I no longer have anxiety in those areas.
The intern retreat was cool for numerous reasons. One, as I mentioned, I began to overcome my anxiety disorder that summer as I stayed the night with the interns and let Aaron drive us around. Ha ha! I remember going to Beth’s house and having lunch, having fun at the Indians game, staying the night in the Westin, waking up in the morning to go to Holliday Park in the early morning to spend quiet time with God. I remember going to Lynn’s house and watching a "welcome video" that the staff had put together for us. In fact, here’s a clip!
We concluded our intern retreat by going to St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Catholic Church which has a beautiful chapel and we spent time praying over each other, it was a moving moment for me.
The rest of the summer The rest of the summer went by fairly fast. I really loved working with JD in our little office, he had the big desk, I had the little desk.
Now that I work in JD’s old office, I miss having an office buddy. It was nice to just have random talks from time-to-time, to hear his phone play "Linus and Lucy" when his wife called, to be able to ask really random questions. He is also a big tech geek, so it was really easy for me to keep up with technology. Oh yeah, we also waited in line so that he could get one of the first iPhones when it was released… ahhh, bonding times!
I’ll never forget the times we went to McAlister’s with Serena and friends, the way he was honest with me (livin’ out loud!), and his overall cheery self. JD was a good boss and is a good friend.
Where I’m at now
Well, it’s no surprise that I’m on staff at Grace. JD had started to branch out on his own with web development and ended up taking a job at Fishhook where he is the e-strategist. Not long after my internship was over with, I applied for JD’s job. It’s been an interesting journey as I look back and realize that three years have passed and all of the changes that have happened in my life (you can read about some of that here). I wish I could write more about my summer, and perhaps I will. If you peruse through the blog you’ll find bits and pieces of what’s culminated over the past three years since I was an intern.
Looking back, I had a feeling that my life was going to change that summer, I never dreamed I would be where I’m at today or have the incredible privilege to work with the people I do. The people I work with and the people of Grace Community Church are my second family. Every weekend when I go to church, I am so thankful and blessed to be here.
And for your enjoyment… some pictures from that summer.
Today was a good day. I had been wanting to visit Trader’s Point Creamery for a couple years and finally realized that most of the summer has already flown by without me going there. So I hopped in the car and drove on over.
While I enjoyed myself, there are a few things you should know. First, the restaurant is too expensive for what you get. I appreciate the fact that everything is locally grown and organic, but I’m still a little suspicious that you’re not getting your money’s worth.
Second, take the self-guided tour. For $2, you can walk around the farm and check out the animals, and have a nice little stroll. Finally, try the dairy bar after your little tour. I had a banana-mango smoothie, but really wished I would’ve tried some ice cream. Oh well, maybe next time!
I’ll leave you with a handful of pictures I took, I hope you enjoy!
Hmmm, I think this is my new favorite song for the moment.
You and I
Ingrid Michaelson
Don’t you worry there my honey
We might not have any money
But we’ve got our love to pay the bills
Maybe I think you’re cute and funny
Maybe I wanna do want bunnies do with you if you know what I mean
Oh lets get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France
Lets get rich and give everybody nice sweaters and teach them how to dance
Lets get rich and build a house on a mountain making everybody look like ants
From way up there, you and I, you and I
Well you might be a bit confused
And you might be a little bit bruised
But baby how we spoon like no one else
So I will help you read those books
If you will soothe my worried looks
And we will put the lonesome on the shelf
Lets get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France
Lets get rich and give everybody nice sweaters and teach them how to dance
Lets get rich and build a house on a mountain making everybody look like ants
From way up there, you and I, you and I
Lets get rich and buy our parents homes in the south of France
Lets get rich and give everybody nice sweaters and teach them how to dance
Lets get rich and build a house on a mountain making everybody look like ants
From way up there, you and I, you and I
This time of year at Grace is always a bittersweet one for me. First off, we get to be a satellite site for the Willow Creek Leadership Summit, which is awesome. But it’s a little bitter because it marks the end of the summer for our interns.
The rest of the summer went by fairly fast. I really loved working with JD in our little office, he had the big desk, I had the little desk.
