It's Never Too Late!

I'm so proud of my mom! I flew home this weekend to attend the graduation ceremony of my mother from Eastern Michigan University.

She gradutated at the age of 65 from nursing school after many years of intensive and vigorous studying of sciences and the human body. She gradutated with honors, magna cum laude! She graduated proudly and with 15 family members there to cheer her on, including 4 of her children and 6 of her grandchildren. She walked across the stage in her black cap and gown, and thanked her friends, family, and faculty for standing by her during her pursuit of collegiate achievement.

It brought tears of joy to my eyes to think about how excited she must be to have this day finally come and to be able to celebrate with the people that love her most. It reminded me that it's never too late to do anything, if you set your mind to it and never give up on your dreams. I never thought that she needed to go to school to prove herself to anyone. Her acheivements in life have been grand thus far, but she did it and I applaud and support her! Thanks mom, you are truly an inspiration and I am honored and be your daughter!

My mom gradutated from college this weekend at the age of 65.....I wouldn't have missed it for the world!

Cheers!

The Problem with Planes

….is that they wait until a flight of a hundred people are comfortably settled and ready for departure before discovering that a flight instrument is broken…..

*Can we please just rev her up for 5 minutes before boarding and inevitably deplaning and inconveniencing tons of weary (and anxious) travelers?

…..the “recline” button is such a tease…..ready? push…..ahhh, yes, 2 inches, I feel so much more relaxed and reclined for that matter!

…..recycled “human-scented” air coming out of vents that either blast or trickle….

….lifting heavy carry-ons over my head into “convenient” overhead compartments which are unaccessible after departure (Ok, so maybe that’s a problem with my packing, but I’ll blame the plane for now!)

...magazine pockets in front of you that don't hold bottled water well!

...no leg room, unless you're in an exit row, in which you MUST know and be willing to assist in the event of a crash or emergency - we all say we will in order to get the "roomy" seat!

..."U-shaped" neck pillows to increase our ability to sleep sitting up in the most uncomfortable position!

...meals on the international flight that are described as "chicken parts with a glob of brown goo on it"....mmmm, yummy, pass the salt and pepper please!

....lines to get on, lines to get off, lines to be searched, delays, lost luggage, minimal compensation...need I go on!

Thank God that He is never late! His timing is perfect, there is plenty of "room" to stretch our legs and rest in Him, His aroma is sweet, His burden is light, there are no lines, and we can taste and see that He is good.....

p.s. I have to say that I really did love the individual movie screens on my first international flight.....they were so cute and useful! Well done KLM Airbus!

Cheers!

Norway Bound

Wow, so in one week I'll be taking my first "overseas" adventure, starting with a long, all night plane ride. It's starting to become real to me that I am actually going. I'm beginning to get excited and nervous. I'll be travelling alone, so I'm a little nervous. But I can't wait to see the Norwegian countryside. I'm really looking forward to the College of Prayer (www.collegeofprayer.org) and joining my pastor and his wife in ministry.

"The College of Prayer is a ministry of the Revival Prayer Institute, Inc. established to mentor Christian leaders who will reach a lost world through a revived church. We are a faith ministry organized exclusively for the purpose of mentoring and encouraging pastors, wives, Christian leaders, missionaries, intercessors - all who desire to more effectively impact their world through fervent revival prayer, prayer evangelism, intercession, and worship. "

I am honored to have a chance to be a part of this.....as I understand it, my role on the Norway trip will be to be available to pray with women during extended prayer and worship times, to listen to God on their behalf, and possibly a chance to participate in worship through singing and playing guitar......

I know this is not a normal "missionary trip" as it is mostly Christian workers, pastors, and leaders who attend these conferences for the purpose of revival and refreshment with the Lord......I am humbled to be able to pray and minister to them.....it excites me that there are people who care so much for God's children and His sheep that they would come just to be renewed so that they can keep standing firm in praying for the lost and encouraging the saved.......I think it is so important to equip the equippers......we all need to be filled and refreshed so that we can continue to harvest the ripened field and participate in the building of God's kingdom here on earth......

These are the prayers of my heart as I prepare my heart, will, and mind:

-for the eyes of my heart to be enlightened so that I might be used in the lives of these people
-for safe travels and against fear of the unknown (foreign country)
-for God to search me and know my heart, to convict me to repentence so that I might be readily available to others in their needs
-for opportunities to minister and speak truth and His word to the hurting and the broken
-that I might be changed through this experience to have a deeper relationship with Christ
-that I may confidently hide His word in my heart (memorization is hard for me)
-for my pastor and his wife as they prepare to teach at the conference
-for the annointing of the Holy Spirit and the manifest presence of God to transform hearts, minds, and wills
-that I would be free to intercede for others without fear
-for boldness!

Thank you so much for reading this......thank you to each of you who have been instrumental in my spiritual upbringing......thank you for bearing my burdens, thank you for raising me in truth, thank you for speaking to me in love, thank you for lifting me up in prayer.......thank you for being my brothers, sisters, father, mother, friends, and confidants....I know that God will prepare me and use me to the glory of His name! Thanks for walking this journey with me......

May Christ bless each of you richly according to His great and unfailing love!

Ha Det Bra (Goodbye, take care of yourself)