Faith, hope, and love

I mentioned in earlier posts that I was hanging out with a couple that used to serve in the Catholic church during the holidays. Frank and Joan Testa. Frank went to a Catholic seminary in Belgium (it's where they send all the smart priests-to-be) and Joan, served for over twenty years as a nun - she wanted to be a nun when she was very young. Why they came out of the Catholic church is very long and involved and not the point of this post.

Anyhow - this couple just loved on me and anyone who does not know the Testas and have not had the privelage of being completely spoiled for a weekend by them is just missing out, that's all there is to it.

More than being very well fed though - i was so thankful for their confidance in me, or maybe I should say their confidance in God to work through me and to come through on my behalf. They prayed with such great faith that the Lord has something tremendously good for me, that He has a hope and a future for me.

They took me to this resturaunt on Friday, and we were talking about my anxieties. Frank told me quite assuringly, "Jen, when you have a pure heart, a heart that is seeking after God, He will always lead you where you need to go. We see your heart and you need to rest in the truth that He wants for you to not worry and to be encouraged, this is the very reason we invited you up here."

When you are uncertain about life and God and where He wants you to go, it is so difficult to see the possibilities. We so desperately need the body of Christ, we need those by our side who will speak faith, hope, and love over us when our vision is tainted and dim. We need people who see in us what we do not see in ourselves. We are kidding ourselves to believe that we can fashion our destinies alone. We need each other.

Frank and Joan loved me like I was their daughter this weekend. The Testas do not have any of their own children naturally, because they got married later in life. But they have so many spiritual children, beloved sons and daughters and I count myself among the lucky few who have been "adopted" by these precious people.

Amish Country

Spent four days in Christiana, Pennsylvania. Home to Frank and Joan Testa, one of the birth places for the underground railroad (in fact there is a sign that says "Freedom was borne here"), and Amish country. The Testas spoiled me rotten, and am going back the second I get the opportunity.

For the last two or three days, I watched horse drawn buggies go by the house. The Amish apparently do not allow children to use bicycles but they will let them use scooters. Don't ask me what the difference is...

That weekend, I saw women hanging out all their clothes.

Singing Spring Foods is an Amish store, a store where oil lamps illuminate the insides.

Amish country is unquestionably beautiful.

Amish country is full of hard working people. They work from sun up to sun down. I wanted to take more pictures of the their dress but I felt like I was invading this very private world that many never get the opportunity to see and experience.

I enjoyed the simplicity of this place. Our culture is inundated with so much "stuff". Everyone needs a good purging of all the distractions in life, and I think mine was way overdue.

It's my hundredth post!

I just would like to say that this is my 100th post.

And I have nothing profound to say.

Happy Thanksgiving! I am off to Amish country (Lancaster, Pennyslvania). An ex priest, and ex nun (who are happily married) invited me to stay with them this weekend. It should prove to be an interesting holiday!!

PIF

A friend and i were sitting in a coffee shop last night talking about relationships and how messy and complicated and really really confusing they are, or at least with the opposite sex. I introduced my friend to the PIF theory. I wish I could claim fame to this theory but it is actually the creation of my friend Reggie. He should copyright it, write a book about it and make some money for his ministry. Seriously Reg, please consider.

But I digress. PIF stands for:

P = proximity (You hang out one on one alot; you are always together)

I= intensity (Deep personal stuff is purged, you are telling each other about the horrible stuff that happened to you as a child.)

F = frequency (You are always talking on the phone, chatting online, meeting together)

If any of these two interactions are given more often than not to the opposite sex than an attraction is bound to develop. And, as he eloquently puts it, this is "not necessarily a move of the Spirit upon your soul."

For example, maybe you happen to be spending a lot of time visiting with someone involved in deep personal conversations. (Proximity and Intensity). Somehow an attraction can develop, which may be confusing to some of us.

But the good news is that it doesn't have to be!!!

Yes! As I have read his theory more and more, I have come to realize that in the event that i am perplexed by the intentions of a guy, I can make it easier on myself by using this process to sort things out.

PIF violations abound in our lives, there is no way to avoid that. I am all for friendships with guys, I hope no one misunderstands. I have friends with guys and they are great and i am grateful for their presence in my life. All I'm saying is that PIF a good filter to put thru all the what ifs we have in relationships. There may be attraction, but not necessarily any follow through. And there may not always be clear communication to confirm anything, so this theory helps me put things into perspective, and keep emotional angst at bay.

So ladies, don't let your mind wander into the bottomless pit, the oblivion of what if he meant something by that???

There is hope for us. There is PIF.

Union Station

On Monday I took Pastor James up to Capital Hill to speak with staffers about Sudan. For the most part I think it went well.


When we were walking back to Union Station, we came across this Korean man.



















He stood alone playing the trumpet. And out of that instrument was the sweetest version of "What a friend we have in Jesus" I have ever heard in my life. It was so beautiful James started to tear up.

In unison, we both turned around, took a deep breath and listened. The man stopped playing and started singing this simple praise song to God. It was so pure and simple and good. A far cry from the cynacism that sort of hung over the city that day like a black cloud. I listened and made a special note of thanksgiving for this man.

Perfectly fitted

I was once a huge Waterdeep fan. My love has subsided, but I just rediscovered them and have also stumbled across their myspace site (who doesn't have one of these now???).

Check their new song out, "Perfectly fitted."

Their official site.

Changing of the guard

This week there was the changing of the guard (The House and Senate are now controlled by the Democrats).....

and much more importantly the change of the Starbucks to - go cup to indicate the holiday season is officially here.

My question to you is which "change" could you have done without???

It's called the Good Ugly

A good ugly cry. That's what happened to me the other day.

What makes a good, ugly cry, truely good and ugly is not simply that you are red faced, tears streaming down, not able to calm down, but in fact that it happens in front of a group of people.

And there is absolutely nothing you can do to stop it.

I mean we are talking, I can't stop the tears from coming. It was a deluge, they could have called for a Flash Flood Warning.

There are techniques to keep emotions at bay. There are ways to stop the madness. Slow measured breathing, focus on something else. But no, not that day. Nothing was going to stop those cursed tears from coming!!

The people that I was with tried to pretend that it wasn't happening which now in retrospect strikes me as funny. How can you pretend that someone is not hyperventilating next to you?

I was thinking today how embarrassed I was at the good ugly. What is so wrong with being emotional, or letting yourself being vulnerable in front of others? Sometimes I hate that my heart is so visibly bleeding on my sleeve, but what can you do? Always have a stash of kleenex nearby that's what....

How many cows are you worth???

At lunch today I sat with my new Sudanese friend, Pastor James. I was asking him how he met his wife, which led into how different tribes bring two people together to get married. The Dinka Tribe story is the best:

First of all, the idea of love being a factor means nothing. If a Dinka man fancies a girl, his family and the girl's family starts negotiating. The guy’s family will offer the number of cows according to the strength of her attributes.

You might be wondering what a quality Dinka woman looks like. Well, according to James she is:

a. Very tall. A woman who is at least 5’9 or taller (He said my height of 5’7 could bring in about 175 – 200 cows)

b. Frankly, she needs to be a big girl. Big strong woman are considered quality because they will most likely survive the angst of bearing ten kiddoes and hacking it out in the bush. It’s all about the big strong girls – they rule in the Dinka Tribe!

c. This is the one I liked the most: The way a woman carries herself is important. The men watch the way she walks; if she is confidant in herself this is huge!!!

So just to sum it up: Tall, Strong, and Confidant, these chics will rake in a lot of cows and get hitched first.

Pastor James

I've been busy the last few weeks because my organizations main contact from Sudan, Pastor James is in town. I think James is going to start calling me the weeping missionary, because his stories make me cry. Mostly - because I feel so bad that in our country the things we should treasure most we take for granted.

One story I will share about his life. In 1988, Northern troops surrounded the largest city in the S. Sudan, Juba, and were basically starving the people to death. Weeks went by and children were starting to die, every day more holes were dug for bodies. Instead of despairing, James and his friends would sit together and remember how faithful God is and His provision. Every day they would thank God for His love that endures forever. It is something that is more valuable than food, more precious than our momentary lives. The life of Jesus, the life He extends to each and every one of us.

James words to us in our devotion this morning: "There is nothing greater in this life than serving our Lord. There is nothing greater in this life than serving others. If we impact one person while we are here on this earth, all the hardship is worth it."

Community: Just Do It

Saturday afternoon: Went over to Abby's house and helped her crew pack lunches and cook soup for the homeless to give out that night. There was alot of laughter, apple cider, and Sufjian's Steven's album Illinois involved. There was some tears shed because the onions and garlic we cut, were pretty stinking strong.

Saturday evening: Omo's curried chicken, Jen's cooked veggies, Jadine's special banana and chocolate chip bread plus fun people sitting around talking and sharing stories. More laughter and silliness ensued.

Last night reminded me of getting together with friends in Houston. Breaking bread together, singing together, praying for each other. This is the way life was meant to be lived.

Believers and Admirers

Courtesy of Kierkegaard and Jason Upton


john 14:6) "Christ claimed to be the way, the Truth, and the life. For this reason, he could never be satisfied with adherents who accepted his teaching- especially with those who in their lives ignored it...His whole life on earth from beginning to end was destined to have followers and to make admirers impossible." -soren kierkegaard


Jesus- help us follow you and not just admire you. Admiring you requires little attention to you, and almost no personal sacrifice. Following you requires my total attention and my whole life. I want to follow you more than I believe in you. Believing you has not made me follow you as much as following you has made me a believe you and trust you. . Jason.

Ciani

My Ciani as a princess.

D - Day

My friend Ashley posted about the closing of Diedrichs, which is Monday. November 6, D-Day. I will have to go see the brutal takeover for myself in December. My friend Joe sent me another article about the closure, which cleared some things up for me. I posted it below.


Coffeehouse closing upsets customers / Landlord elects not to lease site to Diedrich franchiseBy TARA WHITE, Houston Chronicle Correspondent

Jeff Grant is furious that Diedrich Winlow Coffeehouse, 1901 Westheimer, is scheduled to close Nov. 6 after conducting business in that location for 10 years.

Grant, a loyal customer, has contacted everyone in his e-mail address book and has stood in front of the coffeehouse almost every day for weeks to protest its closure.

The property owner hired a 24-hour security guard and police were called because of his presence, but he is not budging.

Grant is not the only person upset about the closure of Diedrich, which serves about 3,500 customers each week. Hundreds have signed petitions to keep it from closing.
Dirk Smith, owner of the coffeehouse and president of Magna Cum Latte Inc., the Diedrich Coffee franchise in Houston, said his customers are upset because they know the business is being forced to close.

Smith said it is closing because T-Con Properties chose not to lease the property to him.
Said Bradford Schmalfuss, vice president of T-Con Properties and landlord for the space, "We have the right to lease with anyone we want to."

Schmalfuss also said T-Con had no obligation to lease to Smith because the company's original lease was with Diedrich Coffee's corporate office, which chose not to renew.

The property will be leased to The Upper Hand Salon, which is located at 1905 Westheimer next to the coffeehouse. The lease becomes effective on Nov. 7.
Rachael Gower, who owns the salon with her husband, Brian Williard, said they plan to use the space to expand their salon operations.

Smith said he does not understand T-Con's decision.
"Our coffeehouse has brought thousands of people to the Winlow Center," Smith said. "I have never paid the rent late. Bradford told me on several occasions I was the best tenant he had."
A letter dated May 11, addressed to Schmalfuss from Diedrich Coffee's corporate office, confirms that Diedrich Coffee did not plan to renew the lease. But it states that corporate officials asked Smith to negotiate a direct lease with Schmalfuss.

E-mail correspondences between Schmalfuss and Smith indicate that Smith and Schmalfuss agreed to move forward with the lease.
Schmalfuss sent Smith a draft of the lease agreement by e-mail in late May for Smith and his lawyer to review.
Negotiations moved forward until June 9, when Schmalfuss sent Smith an e-mail stating that T-Con would not proceed with lease discussions because it planned "to take the center in a different direction."
Smith said he was shocked by the e-mail, as he had returned only a day earlier to his home in California after a special trip to Houston.
Schmalfuss requested the trip because he wanted Smith to discuss parking issues with the Upper Hand Salon.
"I jumped through hoops for him to make sure everything was going smoothly," Smith said. "I don't know what happened in those 11 hours to completely change his decision."
Gower said some have blamed the Upper Hand Salon for the closure of Diedrich Winlow Coffeehouse.

"We absolutely did not push anyone out," she said. "As small business owners we would never do that because we know how hard it is."

Smith plans to fight T-Con's decision until the day Diedrich closes, but he is also looking for a new location and wants to find a temporary space from which his employees could work.
He said employees also have the option to move to the two other Diedrich Coffeehouse locations in Houston, at 4005 Montrose Blvd. and 1008 Bay Area Blvd.

Grant said he will continue to do everything he can to keep the coffeehouse open.
"People have business meetings here. College students come here to study. Parents feel this is a safe place for their children to hang out after school," Grant said "I am going to keep speaking out because I know people love this place."