And the final...

of the three part posting series... MAKE SURE you check out the other two. Hit up that Country Roads video too, hot stuff!

Life.

Well, let me just start by saying that I think in all things we have the temptation to find the negative and the opportunity to find the positive. I am thankful for my new job starting Thursday and I am thankful for attending seminary and studying Greek.

I am a little overwhelmed. So please pray for me. :) Really do. You don't even have to tell me are, just pray. I am convinced that is what has kept me going thus far and what will carry me continually-the cries of the saints! Greek doubled in its difficulty at class this weekend and I am feeling a little frantic about learning all this info in time to turn in my hw on Wednesday. Whew. God is faithful. He will do it. Just pray that I will be diligent and not discouraged and that I will be a beast on the books this week especailly before I start this job.

Also about the job. That I will do it well, that it won't be too much or too overwhelming and that I can build encouraging and positive relationships with my students and co-workers quickly. I think it will kind of be a shock to my system to be in a new school (I have only taught in one professionally), and to have to start all over with new staff and new kids. Exciting-but scary too.

I want to leave you guys with some words that I find pretty comforting and really well describing things I have been pondering lately. This is from a devotional by this dude named Fenelon-The Seeking Heart. He is a really cool dude, you guys should check him out sometime if you haven't before.

"You have some difficult trials to bear but you need them since God has allowed these events to happen. He knows how to select them. You could not have picked for yourself what God brings into your life through the cross. The cross that you would pick out would build your self-will instead of breaking it down.

There are times when everything in life seems to be a trial. Sometimes there is only suffering. Still, the heaviest cross must be carried in peace. Sometimes the cross can neither be carried or dragged. Then you can only fall down beneath it, overwhelmed and exhausted. I pray that God may spare you from suffering as much as possible. [These were written as letters to a friend]

Remember that God is not unaware of your suffering. He allows your suffering. See that He alone knows what is best for you. Live by faith as you embrace your trials. Confidently trust in God, even when you do not see what He is doing. Trust that God, with great compassion, gives you trials in proportion to the help that He wants to bring to you. There is no doubt that the life of faith is the most penetrating of all deaths.

You complain about your inward darkness and poverty of spirit. Jesus says, 'Blessed are the poor in spirit.' It is good for you to see your weakness, but don't excuse it. Remain simple and low before God, and He will bring you peace, gentleness, longsuffering, and contentment even in your trouble."

This is a devotional well worth purchasing. I love you friends. If you made it through all three in my series, please do post and let me know! :)

Timber!

:) Welcome to our home. So aparently, a few weeks ago, the neighbors HUUUUUGE tree was struck by lightning. I mean this tree is massive. The tree is so big that it hangs or (hung I should say) over our house and their house which are atleast 4 or 5 car lengths apart. On Friday night one of the branches split and fell off into our yard on the side of our garage and across the entire span of our front yard. That was just a branch. The tree in its enormity (I would say a good 2/3) is still standing. Tomorrow they are coming to take the whole thing down because it is so unstable, it could actually fall on our house tonight, land right on my room, and keep me from ever writting a blog again!

Also, our whole garage will probably have to be re-done. Although nothing inside was damaged and it didn't cave in, a structural beam was taken out and so was part of the roof and gutters.

Nice. :) Atleast it provides some temporary entertainment, and an extra little exciting place for Winston to pee!

West Virginia

Well, I am about to post about 3 posts in this order
1. Trip to WV
2. Tree on house
3. Life today

West Virginia... I finally got to go to a WVU game. My family has our NC teams and our WV team... I mean there are only 2 to choose from and aparently you can't choose both as my cousins at both respective schools tell me, so by default, we choose WVU-EVEN THOUGH my momma did go to Marshall for a year or two. And then there is that We Are Marshall true story to love and the movie as well.

Anyway, so my uncles are in the grocery business. They get season tickets to all the home WVU games at the beginning of the season from their produce vendor. Nice. My mom's brother, Hudson, has 2 sons currently at WV and 2 in high school on their way to WVU. They go to every game. They normally sit apart but because my mom's uncle-my great uncle Joe who I work for during the summers- hardly ever goes, he offered to give me his tickets and then we could all sit together.

Except... we got the tickets and his were different. We were already in nice seats- lower level row 35ish around the 38 yard line! woot! But his tickets were in the same section row 10!!! So, since Hudson and one of his sons and I all drove up together from Charleston that day we went ahead and sat in their normal seats. I didn't care much, I needed a lot of help understanding everything thats going on (even though I have been watching football for 24 years) and I enjoy their company. When my other two cousins got there that attend WVU, we gave them the tickets uncle Joe gave me and watched them proceed down to row ten, and keep walking over and over and over and over closer and close to the 50 and sure enough, home boys were on the 49 yard line! Woot! Uncle Joe and the hook ups. I call him the Lebanease Mafia-party of 1. He is a thriving business man at the age of 83. I love my family... :)


The Stadium


Uncle Hudson-he is so hard core. He was listening play by play on the radio. So every time there was something in question or a flag was thrown, he was our man!


Damon-youngest of the 4 and of the 9 grandkids- other wise known as my "Dae Dae" boy. My dad gave him that nick name when he was like 4, no one knows why. He hated it until I started calling him that. Now its his trademark. What I do for these people...


Ryan-who is the eldest of the 4 boys- follows me in the 9 grandkid line up. He is a senior-ish at WVU and is looking at starting a really cool clothes business. I'm sure I'll post more on that later! :)


Sean-next in the line up after Ryan. He is a sophmore at WVU and currently the best on the grill of our generation :)


Me! In my WVU attire. Aparently, no one felt it important to tell me that you are actually supposed to wear yellow/gold instead of blue to the game so that the stadium looks uniform. Thanks fam. :)


Okay, so let me know if this video does/doesn't work. At the end of the WVU game the large majority of the peeps hang out and sing "country roads" :). I thought you guys my appreciate this cultural experience.