What They See

I've come to realize how unappreciated my work at school is. Whether in classes or with student council, it seems that people don't see what I do. Not only that, but they see me doing little even when I'm doing a lot. I don't get it. There's probably something on that in the Bible, something to do with long-suffering and such, but still, it's a really disappointing thing. When you put most of your effort into something, and people are literally blind to it and only see your mistakes, it tends to take a toll on your opinion of the place. One example is the work I did in student council. No one remembered me being at any of the meetings, and yet it was my ideas that ended up being the highlights of the night.

God isn't like that though, and neither is Paradigm, Lakeshore, or my small group. All I get from those is encouragement. Lesson: Hang around godly people at godly places, and people will see the worth in you when others don't.

Assume Nothing

This is the end of an era. I'm just glad that I get to help out with the start of the New Paradigm. Pastor Nick talked about the words "Assume Nothing". What a timely word! That's kinda the theme of the early church, I think. They had no previous knowledge of what should or could restrict someone with Jesus living in them. This was the way it should be. They didn't know that certain things weren't "appropriate" for a church service. They had no assumptions about anything God could or couldn't do. They assumed that He was the almighty creator of the universe, and He was fully willing and capable of doing anything and everything that they, their church, or the people around them needed.

This has kinda been the message I've been wanting to impart to the junior highers. To assume nothing about what God can do. Never assume that a junior higher can't do things. "Things" being prophesying, performing miracles or healings, or, even bigger for junior highers, to have Wisdom in what they say.

On The Horizon

I felt like God said that I'd be able to live in that awesome way that I've been yearning to. He said this coming semester was the time for it. The difference now will be that I'll keep in mind the value of balance. During my time in Canton, I had lots of time to sit around praying, texting and selling (didn't sell much). Things came together. Here are a few things on the horizon for me/us:

1. Generally speaking, I'm stepping it up in leadership. I stepped back this past semester to let other people step up. To be specific, Rush and Perez didn't. Rush would be the main problem there. He's the one with the friggin' huge anointing for leadership. So yeah, when the ones that God wants don't step up, those less-abled among us have to do so. This is how Jordan and I end up leading. Not to downplay my or Jordan's abilities, of course. I just felt like God is having us take the place of someone who decided not to step up when God wanted them to.

2. New Paradigm. I'll be talking to Pastor Nick about videos for the New Paradigm tomorrow. One such new video may be a new, improved version of the I Am Paradigms. Pastor Nick originally intended for them to be a fresh word caught on video. I've got an idea for the first fresh word (it's based on the blog about Solla Sollew by Dr. Seuss).

3. Revolt, the school retreat coming up at the end of January. Jordan said he needed someone organized to help out with it. Guess who was waiting for someone else to step up to the plate? Yep, so now that it's a month away, I'm taking over much of the planning. I texted Cameron, and he confirmed that Mike Bond will most likely want to be a part of this, so there's our speaker. Awesome? I think so.

4. I get to give most of my/God's Christmas money away (the money I was gonna be living on for awhile or, if I saved it, gambling with on the cruise). I love having to rely on God financially. Don't worry; His orders, not mine.

5. God revealed something to me through my Dr. Seuss research. Dr. Seuss wrote his books for adults, but written in language simple enough for children to understand (in many of his first drafts, he cussed and swore a lot). When asked if he would ever write adult books instead of childrens, he replied that he didn't know of a difference between the two. This plus a sermon I was listening to clued me in on something. I've been uncertain of whether to approach the subject of awesome supernatural stuff with my small group, 'cause I wasn't sure if it'd be the appropriate group. But it's a subject I ALWAYS wanna talk about, like something rising up in me. So maybe, just maybe, if it's done simply, we can start talking about my favorite parts of Christianity.

I'm excited.

Baby Got Back

That's right, I got my camera back. Of course, it didn't come back with its case or memory card, but luckily, I had a spare card, so it's functional. Now, hopefully, I'll be able to capture all the things I've been wanting to capture lately. Like pictures of myself.

Paradigm seemed to be kinda low-tone last night. I felt out of it. I still kinda feel out of it, but I'll probably feel into it tonight, 'cause it's the annual Childrens Church workers party. A good part of why I keep working there is because of this party. The first year I went, I won a $25 gift card. The year after, I got free movie tickets. Last year, I got a $5 Starbucks card and a few goodies. It's also catered by Carino's, which is Italian, my favorite.

Here are a few more pictures I took today:

My priority wall, so I won't get stressed when I think of all the things I have to do.

Some people in Poetry have fancy driveways.

Alexandra was trying to get a ride from me, but I was reluctant, so I drove away.

My car friend. I haven't named him yet. Any name suggestions?

Renewal

Oh the joy that is my life when God is at work!

Friday, Cameron was 40 minutes late, but seeing as how the lakehouse is about relaxing, we didn't hold it against him. I still felt that overbearing feeling, so I was kinda quiet the whole time. But I went to the dock at around 1:00 AM to enjoy the pre-stormy weather, and talked to Michelle for awhile. As I talked, God showed me how I had been looking so far ahead before The Core, then after The Core, as soon as God told me to look at the present, at every opportunity, I took it to the opposite extreme, becoming a workaholic for God. It's a pretty common thing for people who get a large annointing. I poured out so much that my physical body started being affected. This wasn't healthy at all. So God showed me that I need to find a good balance.

The next day, we left the lakehouse, and I went with Cameron to his house with Trish, then we all went to Nathan and Sam's new apartment for a little party. Realizing that all the rooms were connected, Trish and I decided to run a circuit. Unfortunately, Alan Jensen and Nathan both didn't approve of it. When I got home from that fun, my dad told me that I was grounded from driving for the next week (but I could still hang out with friends and everything, but I would have to find my own ride), and I was happy, 'cause that was an answer to the prayer that I didn't wanna pray. I needed to get on my dad's good side.

Sunday, I went to all three services, since I had to ride with my dad, and Pastor Nick talked about the new Paradigm. I can't wait for it. It's gonna be good. When we split up to pray for each other, I talked with Newman, and God gave me words of Wisdom. We talked about all of the big decisions right now, and I'm just a step ahead of him, so I was a duck, and told him how to look at a lot of it. That duck dream went through my head for a lot of the conversation. That must mean that I was doing something right. After church, I went home and, realizing how much I wanted Fanta, got Alexandra's bike and rode to the gas station and back. I spent the rest of the day sleeping and reading. It was hard to get to sleep, though.