Poem

Robert Frost (1874–1963).  Mountain Interval.  1920.

1. The Road Not Taken

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;         5   Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same,         10   And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.         15   I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.         20

Is it Mostly Sunny or Partly Cloudy?

I've always liked to think that our best character traits are the way that we are most like God.

For instance, we have all heard of people who "have the patience of a saint." I believe that they actually have the patience of God. Love, mercy, compassion, reason, creativity, even things like perceptiveness and discernment. If we are made in God's image, then what part of Him do you look like? Maybe these are the gifts of The Holy Spirit; maybe they're God's personal stamp on you that He placed there when He looked at you and said "It is good!" God gave us these traits out of Himself and when we are operating out of them, we are acting out of our true selves.

It may be mine that I tend to look at people out of a sense of eternal optimism. Which is probably why I get so disappointed when those I know act exactly how I thought they would, but not how I had hoped they would. I'd like to think of this as a good part of my character, that I am always hoping that someone will operate out of the best of themselves, that they will choose the wiser path, that they will bloom. I also try to encourage others to live up to their best, and I get very emotional when I see them accomplish it, or at least take the next step. But it seems to be so rare. Much more often people don't choose to stretch for the better or best they can be, but instead do what they're used to. I'm as guilty of it as anybody: the desire to be comfortable overwhelms the desire to work at being better. 

I like to think that God is the same way. He hopes the best for us every day. Maybe the only way God can love us after the things we do is because He's optimistic. He knows how He made us and what we can be if we will walk and talk with Him. Jeremiah 29:11:  "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." 

Trust Him, for 

       God is not a man, that He should lie, 

       nor a son of man, that He should change his mind. 
       Does He speak and then not act? 
       Does He promise and not fulfill? (Numbers 23:19)

My heart is let down whenever someone doesn't live up to the best of themselves. When they choose to be petty instead of great. When they choose to follow the crowd instead of blazing a new trail. When they chase what they want instead of what they need. When they don't have courage to back up their convictions and life choices, but instead look for opportunities to escape them. 

My heart hurts worst when I do these same things.

These are choices, even if the worse option is easier to choose than the better. Just because a choice is easy doesn't make it the right one; God often works in a way we would consider paradoxical, so the difficult choice sometimes is the right one (and ends up being easier in the long run). Make God happy today. Be everything you and He know you can be. 

The Beginning is The End is The Beginning...

I finished my first week at my new job. What a crazy week! The first couple days were mostly orientation stuff, just filling out paperwork and getting to know people. I started to get my feet wet during the last couple days, and it's exciting already! Even though I will still be training for a couple weeks, a few responsibilities have been pushed my way so that I can start getting used to it. 

I had to be there at 6 am Thursday and Friday, so I'm getting some practice getting up EARLY. It hasn't been that bad, as long as I monitor what time I go to bed the night before. And Friday I stayed up a little late after getting up at 4 am because I could sleep in the next morning. I need to be there at 5:30 Monday, so slowly I'm working my way to the time I'll most likely have to come in once I'm done training, which will probably be about 4:30 or 5 in the morning! While that's really early in the morning, it shouldn't be too bad because I'll be off mid-afternoon and have the weekends off. So plenty of time to rest.

It was a weird experience, my last two days at Zaxby's. Most of my jobs have ended without me needing to put in a notice (such as the job in which my boss was a crook and couldn't guarantee my paycheck would be good), so this is only the second time I've really worked out a notice longer than a week. It was an interesting transition, not just from my standpoint, but also watching them move me out and get used to the idea of not having me around. I have probably had more influence at Zaxby's than any other place I have ever been, so in a way it was bittersweet. Many of the people who work there I hired. Most of the managers were trained by me. The three managers at each store who I had had the most influence over I worked with on my last days. We reminisced some and I tried to leave each with a piece of advice. I will miss the people I worked around, even if I don't necessarily miss the environment. I was SO ready to get out of the restaurant business. So I'll miss the people, but some of us are going to definitely keep in touch and I'm sure we'll see each other often. They're my friends and not just because we worked together. So anyways, it's a time of new beginnings (sorry for the Smashing Pumpkins song title at the beginning)! Hopefully I'll be able to report that we as a family are moving soon!

btw...

I really should give some credit to those whom it is due. The picture that adorns the top of my blog was taken by a friend of ours who does AWESOME photography. Look her up!

Praise You in this storm...

WOW.

I took a group from our church to go see Hillsong United this past Wednesday. They have become probably my favorite worship band over the last couple years. Their album "United We Stand" is great from beginning to end. And then last year they released an album whose cover was simply this image:

I love that. It can be the simplest in iconography, but there is a lot of depth to the image as well. We Americans are used to seeing "I ♥ NY" or whatever else. But this is much simpler. "I Love" - period. And at the center of the heart is Jesus, the reason for that love. I bought the t-shirt at the concert, by the way ;).

Anyway, Hillsong United usually do not play very many shows in the USA, so I was thrilled when I saw that they were coming to Atlanta. So they get kicked off and obviously we're having a great time. Then the youth pastor from Hillsong Church gets up to talk and I'm loving it. Then things got really going.

You see, I loved the stage production that night. The lighting is good, but it takes some of the focus off of the band, which enables the audience to focus on God. I think that's a great decision. Besides, God had His own light show planned.

Right after the guy gets done talking it starts raining. We're sitting on the last row of seats that are (barely) covered by the pavilion. Didn't matter, 'cause we were gonna get wet. The rain keeps getting harder and harder and yet no one seemed to care. The rain even was coming under the pavilion and getting on stage, and yet the band came back out and kept playing (I don't know why I expected them to quit). So within a few minutes we're soaked but having a great time. Near the end they sang one of their new songs, "Your Name High" and the place went nuts. It was an amazing experience, and one I think I'll treasure for a long time. The energy was amazing and you could feel The Holy Spirit there. I don't know why the fact that it was raining made it so much more powerful, but I'm not sure I'll ever have another concert worship experience quite like it.

P.S. This is one of the best-sounding live bands ever. The End.

And so...

I am ending my time with Zaxby's.

It has been 5 years. Originally, I had started there hoping to get some management experience that would help me in a career. I have gotten that and so much more. 5 years is longer than I have ever worked at one job, and I feel that it was the right time for a change. 

I have not been looking for a new job so much as I have been entertaining offers. I have interviewed for 2 youth minister positions that did not work out, and I had pretty much despaired of finding something else after that. It is kinda neat how God works things out, though, isn't it?

I had a deal for a car almost drop into my lap last month. Good car, reliable, great mpg, great condition, good mileage, and VERY affordable. It turns out that I would need it for my new job, which is about 35 miles from my house. I was not certain that I would be able to go to this job, but it appears to be just what we need! 

And so while I will not be getting into vocational ministry, I will still be able to work at Westwood while also bettering my family's situation. 

Thank you, Father!

Georgia Aquarium

We were able to take a trip to the Georgia Aquarium a couple weeks ago. That was fun! It was a family trip, but we often pick places that we know DJ will love. As anyone who knows us can attest, he is fascinated with marine life and talks incessantly  about it. I was really excited about seeing the whale sharks, as they are examples of the largest fish in the world. In the video I made sure to put in the moment that we first saw them. There is a large window that is oriented towards the central area of the building so that it catches your attention. We were standing there before we entered the exhibit when we first saw the whale sharks. One went by and I caught it on camera and I thought it was huge. Then the BIG one went by and it is ginormous! I caught the last half of it on the tape. I hope you enjoy the video (if you can make it all the way through!).