On Monday nights in the Senegal days, a few of us (Cori, Barb, Phil, and myself) would gather and watch Alias and 24. Well, it seems that 24 is an overseas experience on various continents. My roommate, Amy, got hooked on it while in Taiwan. Her friend from Taiwan is visiting this week...so...we went out and rented the whole season 4 of 24 and have been having a 24 marathon for the last 2 days. It's a bit ridiculous, but we have to have it done by Wednesday...so, in 2 days we have watched 17 episodes. I don't know how people watch it from week to week on TV...we have a hard time stopping after watching 10 of them! Anyhow, I think we will finish tomorrow...if you are a 24 fan and have not seen season 4, its VERY addicting, so here is your warning. :)

In other news, our house did in fact get a new roommate today. So now house 17 will be made up of the four of us...and to end, I have to say that the weather down here in SC has been quite lovely. Went for a walk tonight in sweatpants and a t-shirt...yesterday played soccer in the front yard. Quite the change from bitter cold winds...though I am told it will get "cold" here yet. I guess we'll see. :)

Oh...and an update on the Africa Cup...just checked the scores on the matches...looks like Ghana beat out Senegal which was sad to see...but looks like my "American sister", Cori's team (Guinea) is doing well thus far! Check it all out if you like...Africa Cup.

999.3 miles. I'm not kidding. That's what the little "trip" thing read in my car when I pulled into my driveway. 999.3 miles from Iowa City to my home here in SC.

Here's a little review of the last two days...

Iowa. Illinois. Indiana. Ohio. Kentucky. Tennessee. North Carolina. South Carolina.

I'm beat. Good night!

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Side note and a little later...

Some of you know my utter terror of jellyfish...well, I couldn't resist sharing this article...I'm not the only one who can't handle jellyfish! :)

Jellyfish Take on Nuclear Warship...

THE USS Ronald Reagan can single-handedly take on a nation's armed forces but met its match in Moreton Bay's jellyfish.

The slimy invertebrates were being sucked into the 97,000 tonne ship at such a rate generators were constantly switched over and local fire crews placed on stand-by as the creatures disabled full on-board capacities.

In June 2004 a P&O cruise liner was stranded in Brisbane after a school of jellyfish also blocked the engines' water intake vent.

The world's largest aircraft carrier was due to leave Brisbane at 8am today after the 6000 crew enjoyed five days of shore leave.

The jellyfish have exposed the giant ship's weakness, a humble button, screw or piece of litter can bring the 332-metre behemoth to a standstill.

Under the FOD, or foreign object damage protocol, any alien object can ruin the ship's intricate workings or endanger the take-off or landing of one of the ship's 80 fighter planes.

The time is nearing 1am and I have to be up in the morning to finish packing up, running some errands, and then finally getting on the road by noon so I can be in Indy by 6pm where I will stay until I head back to SC on Friday morning. As I lay here on top of my bed, feeling the electric blanket getting things warm for one last night here at home, I am struck with a thought...I long for Heaven. I don't have a death wish or anything of the sort...I just long for that place where I can be with Jesus and there will be no more moving around or that constant feeling of "unsettled"...in Heaven, I can put down roots that will remain for all eternity. No more saying goodbye to those I love...no more uncertainties about the road ahead...no more long, lonely trips. I think I've shared before how my pastor once said that Heaven is a place where we are welcome, comfortable, and loved. Someone told me not long ago that everytime they say goodbye to people, it gets harder...my heart echoes that thought tonight. I can get pretty cozy where ever I am, which I suppose is why God keeps me on the move...it forces me to depend on Him all the more. Anyhow, a very warm bed is calling my name, so for now, I pray you are well, where ever you are...and I'll see you when I get back to SC. Grace.

A few random things...

In the next 10 days, there is anywhere between a 10 and 20 degree difference between IA and SC...Never thought I would say it, but I'm really looking forward to it being a little warmer...I miss being outside...and I've become a real wimp in the last couple years with the cold weather. :)

In the last 2 days, I've heard from 5 friends who I haven't heard from for months upon months...it has been so nice to catch up with Ruthie, Paul, Wilson, Brina, and Kasey a little bit...these are some of my very favorite people at that! :)

I'm baffled by my Hawks...with an incredible game against Illinois last week, and then Minnesota...then that Michigan State game...it was sad...but it looks like they are making up for that tonight with Indiana. Go Hawks!

If you haven't seen "End of the Spear" yet...go...go now. But be sure to take your tissues...even knowing what was going to happen and going into it saying, "I'm not going to cry," well, apparently my eyes sprung a leak during the movie. It is really moving and really makes one reconsider many things in life. My favorite line: "No one took my dad's life...he gave it."

Tomorrow is my last day home...I'm heading out on Thursday...one would think that I would be used to coming and going by now...but I still don't much care for it...it's been a sweet time at home...but it will be nice to get back to SC as well. :) After a looooong drive. :)

"I saw the Lord always before me.
Because He is at my right hand,
I will not be shaken.
Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will live in hope,
because You will not abandon me to the grave,
nor will You let Your Holy One see decay.
You have made known to me the paths of life;
You will fill me with joy in your presence."
Acts 2:25-28

I read this the other night and this Psalm stuck out to me. I was just thinking about it...to know that if God is "at my right hand"...that I won't be shaken. When things get chaotic, remembering that God's got it...I don't need to fret about it...He's a good Father who dearly loves His children...and whereas He doesn't spare us pain and hard times, He does promise to be there through them. I love that. I read a quote today that talked about joy being a grin on the inside. I love that. Regardless of how bleak or wonderful things are, we can "grin on the inside" because we know we are infinitely loved. Good stuff...

On a completely different note...Senegal beat Zimbabwe today to advance in the battle for the Africa Cup title. If you want to read all about it, check this out: Senegal Wins.

And more snow. :)

Yesterday, I went to pick up my niece...like I was saying before, 50's one day...then 3 inches of snow the very next. :) You gotta love Iowa!!

Iowa makes me laugh. Two days ago it was about 20 degrees and we had some flurries. Yesterday it was just bitter cold. Today? 50 degrees. It's just so unpredictable...sort of like life. :)

Anyhow, I'm heading out of here in a week to get back to SC...I'm certainly looking forward to getting back there, but also enjoying my last few days here at home. Today, my buddy Mike, who I met in Senegal came up to IC and we had lunch and then went to a little African/Middle Eastern grocery store that another buddy showed me a few years back. I knew Mike would appreciate this place...they not only had Vimto...but also Maggi cubes!! So I might go back and get those and try my hand at a few Senegalese recipes. :) We'll see. Anyhow, it's the little things in life that excite me and I wanted to share. :)

Heard this song this morning...found and read the lyrics...they just made sense...and I wanted to pass them on. Enjoy.

Well, I was there when you were torn apart
Now a piece of you is gone
Somehow you wish that you could only find
A little strength to carry on

You’ve tried so hard to make it on your own
That your heart has come undone
So I am here to prove that I alone
Have the power to overcome

Don't let your heart be troubled
This world will never keep you down
It will never keep you down

So rise up, my friend
No, this will never be the end
So rise up, my friend
And live again

I didn’t want you to feel this way
It's not what life was meant to be
And so for you, my friend, I’ll take your shame
You can give it all to me

'Cause you've wrestled demons every day
And they've dragged you to your knees
But in your weakness you will learn to find
That I will always be your strength

In life or in death
Through joy or regret
And all of the secret things you have done
No matter what comes, my friend
Nothing can keep you from the love of God

-"Rise Up" by Third Day

Tonight I rose up with the moon,
and looking down from high above
I saw a world carved and confused
into valleys deep in need of love
And falling down all thick with grace,
Heaven's cloud of mystery
Was filling every empty space,
down to the depth of human need

-Bebo Norman, "Deeper Still"

Anonymous. A word that just kills a curious person as myself. I don't know who commented a couple of days ago with these words, but much thanks. These words just hit the nail on the head. The world is in such need of Love...and God's grace is what can fill every nook and crany of that need. I mean think about it, He's everywhere...who brings the new buds to the trees after a harsh winter? This one always gets me...who feeds the sparrows in the cold, snowy months? They don't fret because they know that their Creator will provide. Sparrows always inspire me not to fret, but to simply believe. God sustains our very life and goes beyond that to give us His Son so that we can spend eternity with Him. Someone once told me, "Your reality is God's grace." As much as I didn't want to believe those words at the time, they are Truth. God's grace-His forgiveness and love that I don't deserve-that is the reality that I live in...that is what keeps me going.

If you look over to the right you may notice a few new things...one is "Links" and the other is "Tanzania". There isn't a whole lot up on them yet...but feel free to check these out when you have time!

Not much else going on here. It's a cloudy, windy, cold Iowa day here...so I thought I'd take the chance to update a few things on my site. Enjoy!

So can I just say that if you ever have the opportunity to hear Brennan Manning speak, go for it! The man has such a beautiful grasp on grace and he helps bring about a new understanding of it through sharing his own life, which has been filled with many ups and downs!

I just wanted to share some of the thoughts that hit me from the weekend's retreat...

In God's loving us, He has made us lovable.

God not only loves you, but He likes you, too!

Healing our image of God heals our image of ourselves.

Breathe in and breathe out the following statement daily, "Abba, I belong to you."

If you truly believe you are Abba's child, "notify your face!"

Our primary identity is as Abba's child.

"How can you say you love me if you don't know what hurts me?" God truly knows what hurts us and truly loves us.

God says to us, "I expected more failure from you than you expected from yourself."

The only way people are going to understand that they are treasured by God is if we treat them in that way.

Just thinking a lot about TRUST lately...it's amazing the things we put our trust in...and the things that we won't trust.

One door closes and its like a thousand others open up...and I feel like Gandalf in the mines of Moria sitting trying to figure out which one is the right path to take. Just waiting for the moment when I will get a whiff of air and all of the sudden just know which one is the right one. But alas, I fear that will not happen! So, I will have to just take the plunge and hope for the best...thank God for unlimited grace and His guiding hand...even when I can't clearly see it. :)

So these options have been swimming around in the pools of my mind: go to Tanzania...stay in school next year, just get the degree finished and then take care of the costs...go to Tanzania for a shorter amount of time...go to school next year, but get a part time teaching gig and therefore take fewer hours...don't go to Tanzania...move back to Iowa, or somewhere totally new, and get a full time teaching gig so that the license doesn't lapse...or just drop it all, magically pay off all the loans from this year and go to Sudan/Uganda and help out there...or just go back to Senegal and teach there. And the options just keep scrolling around...and everyday a new one gets added to the pile. Gotta love it.

So...needless to say, I am my usual clueless self and desperately want to escape the world and FINALLY go to the Grand Canyon...one can only weigh the pros and cons so many times before they need a break....but since I can't get to the Grand Canyon just yet...instead, I will settle for Peoria, IL this weekend to hear Brennan Manning speak. Should be good...but no Grand Canyon escape...yet. :)

"I was the lion." And as Shasta gaped with open mouth and said nothing, the Voice continued. "I was the lion who forced you to join with Aravis. I was the cat who comforted you among the houses of the dead. I was the lion who drove the jackals from you while you slept. I was the lion who gave the Horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at midnight, to receive you."

"Then it was you who wounded Aravis?"
"It was I."
"But what for?"
"Child," said the Voice, "I am telling you your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but his own."

-CS Lewis, "The Horse and His Boy" (Chronicles of Narnia)

Sometimes God brings comfort. Sometimes He brings protection. Sometimes He brings pain. Someday when this life is over and I stand face to face with Him, I want to ask Him what my story is. I want to see this tapestry in its fullness. I know many of the situations in which He has brought me comfort. I know of a few times when He has protected me, though I am sure there are infinitely more. And I know of the periods when He has orchestrated pain in my life...I want to know what the purpose was. I want to see this life through His eyes. But I'm not there yet.

As for now, I must live content in what I do know...simply that He is good...not safe, as Lucy discovered, but certainly good. When life pulls the rug out from underneath me, I can rest assured that He is good and loves His children. Show me grace, though...I'm a slow learner and am still learning to believe it in my heart at times.

Do you need a good laugh? There are some very hilarious things going on in this world...I have recently run into a web page that lists some of the oddest headlines. Ok, so cows provided some humor when I was in Senegal, particularly the lone cow who was wandering down the street and eating grass where she could find it. But check out this cow:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=1480572

If you want to see some other hilarious stories, let me know and I'll get you that site...I find it makes those boring downtimes pass pretty quickly and gives some good laughter...which is always a plus. :)

I never thought you were a fool
But darling, look at you
You gotta stand up straight, carry your own weight
These tears are going nowhere, baby

You've got to get yourself together
You've got stuck in a moment and now you can't get out of it
Don't say that later will be better now you're stuck in a moment
And you can't get out of it

-Stuck in a Moment You Can't Get Out Of, U2

Joy is a choice.  It has been impressed upon me lately that if I am unhappy
 where I am, going somewhere else will not necessarily alleviate that disconent.
 It's much like the infamous, when you are married you will be happy, when
 you are married, when you have children you will be happy...and on and on
 it goes...joy is a choice that we have to make here in this moment....where
 we are right now.  I know I struggle with this from time to time...this time
in my life being one of those times...but the fact is that God has us where we
 are to be for a reason and I need to simply trust His goodness and choose to
 be content...it was just funny that as I was emailing my "American Sister",
Cori (who, oddly enough, is from Canada) about this very thing, I had U2
 playing (which I don't often listen to, but was just in a mood for soemething
 different), and this song above came on and it was just perfect...so I wanted
 to share. :)  As my cell phone reads when you open it "ENJOY TODAY."

Tonight I went to see Pride and Prejudice with my mom. I have to confess I would not have paid to go see this movie...but I needed out of the house and Mom offered...and I have to say, sometimes moms know what is good. I thought it was a wonderful movie and would even go and see it again!

But what I really wanted to share with you is one line from the movie (sorry, I do not know the characters so well as I never read the book) where Elizabeth's friend has agreed to marry Mr. Collins who Elizabeth turned down because he drove her nuts. I wish I had the exact quote from this, but the idea is here...

"I'm 27, single, a burden on my family, and I have no prospects! So don't you dare judge me for marrying Mr. Collins!"

So I have to say that at this point in the movie, my mom and I were laughing hysterically...it's like Jane Austen looked into the future, saw me and decided to write about me in that first part of the line! Anyhow, if you see the movie, you will hear the line I am talking about and laugh. It was a good movie, as far as I am concerned...I highly recommend it! :)

This is a poll and I need your participation again...this is our friend Matt (see below)...do you like the mountain man look? Yes or no...let us know. :)

Tonight our buddy, Matt, stopped by on his way back to Omaha and had dinner with my friend Becky, and me. Good times with good friends. :)