Yahweh

I recently finished spending hours and hours of my life writing a paper about a psalm of lament - Psalm 13 - which essentially declares that Yahweh is a God who cares and is personally invested in His people. The psalmist cried out in pain to Yahweh, appealing to this very fact. In the psalm itself, the psalmist laments of a feeling of separation from God and pleads with Him to look upon him once again. And this plea isn't an empty one; instead, it is one full of expectation and hope and trust that God will do so because it is who he is. Yahweh is not a God who leaves his powers unknown or eternally abandons his people. No - he is the God of the covenant of Abraham; the God that says, forever, "I will be your God, and you will be my people."

The morning of turning in this paper, we discussed in class the significance of the date 587 BC for the Old Testament Hebrew people. This was the year in which Jerusalem was destroyed and the Israelites went into exile in the hands of the Babylonians. 587 BC. This was the turning point of the Old Testament people - which means that for generations and generations and generations before that, Yahweh was worshiped. This was not the beginning, but the climax.

587 BC. Our God was served far earlier than 587 BC.

Immediately after turning in this paper, I attended a chapel service at Fuller, which included communion. The focus of the service was Hebrews 13:8: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever."

We serve the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We serve the God of the covenant of Abraham. We serve the God who was worshiped in 587 BC - and earlier. A song says, "Yesterday, today, and forever - you are the same, you never change." And so this covenant that was made to Abraham (far before 587 BC!), the covenant the psalmist in Psalm 13 drew upon for hope in his pain, still stands for us today. The promise to "never leave you or forsake you" which was given as far back as Deuteronomy, Joshua, and 1 Kings is reiterated in Hebrews - and can be clung to by the followers of Yahweh today.

This promise is not a finished one. It did not end with Abraham. It did not end in 587 BC in Babylon. It did not end with Jesus Christ and his death on a cross. It was resurrected with him and lives on forever. And, just as the psalmist in Psalm 13, we can call upon it in our pain in full hope - resurrection hope - that our God - Yahweh, the covenant God - will never leave us or forsake us.

Look out, Conan!

You probably have heard that Jay Leno is no longer doing the Tonight Show on NBC. You've probably also heard that he's going to make an attempt at a sort of variety show, which I assume will probably fail, as all variety shows do, but that is neither here nor there.

Another thing you've probably heard is that Conan O'Brien is taking Jay's spot on late-night NBC.

Oh, and you should know by now that Jeremy and I now live in Pasadena, CA, which is located in the Los Angeles area. You might also be aware of the fact that the Tonight Show is located in LA.

One thing you probably don't know (yet), however, is that there's a lottery to win free tickets to Conan once he makes the switch to Leno's spot in June.

And guess who has tickets? We do!

On Monday, June 15, check out Conan O'Brien - 11:35/10:35 Central p.m. We just might just grace your TV with our presence!

A Confession

I have a confession to make. I love pretty much any cheesy show that involves singing. I'm addicted to American Idol (although you could argue that it's not cheesy...then again, you could argue it is...*cough*ryanseacrest*cough*), and I still watch beauty pageants for the talent competition (although the girly side of me is, admittedly, intrigued by all the pretty dresses). Tonight, I watched Mama Mia! while my husband was away for the night. I'm always drawn to movies like Rent and Hairspray...and, yes, I even once watched High School Musical. What can I say, I'm a sucker for singing. In the same vein, I've always loved shows like Star Search or America's Got Talent or, now, Britain's Got Talent (way to go, Susan Boyle!).

Maybe it's because I'm a singer. Maybe it's because I have a morbid fascination of hearing people who think they can sing fail - although maybe not, because I can't stand the auditions for that very reason. I don't know what it is...but I love singing and musicals - everything from to Bye Bye Birdie to The Sound of Music to Les Miserables.

That said, I do draw the line somewhere. High School Musical was too ridiculous even for me. I just couldn't do it.

So, my confession is this: Have you heard of the upcoming new FOX show, Glee? I can't wait for it to start. I'm almost looking forward to American Idol being over so it can start. (Almost.) I even wrote the date of the premiere on my calendar (Tuesday, May 19 - after the American Idol finale). A bunch of outcast kids finding a place in high school through singing and dancing - and, what's more, singing and dancing to Journey??? Sign me up!

There you have it. Give me a cheesy song and dance, and I'm a happy camper.

progress on the job front

Our hunt for income continues, but we've gotten some good news the past few days.

First of all, the family I'll be babysitting for contacted me earlier this week with news that the current babysitter, who's expecting twins this summer, was put on bed rest for the rest of her pregnancy due to high blood pressure. While I'm sure this is frustrating for her, it means that I'll start two weeks earlier than expected - and my first full day is Tuesday! They were hoping to have me come a few more times for some "half days" before I jumped in to an 8 hour day, but that's not an option anymore...so, Tuesday, here we come. It's a relief to know that at least some income is headed our way sooner rather than later.

In other news, we've sorta been in process with a church looking for some leadership help in worship. We've gone to visit a few times already, and were so welcomed and genuinely "loved-on" - the church and the people in it have already found a spot in our hearts, I think. And, believe it or not, they already asked us to play in the worship band on Easter Sunday - which marked our third time of attending a service there! Crazy. Anyway, we went there initially because we were told they were looking for musicians/worship leaders and were told to send our resumes, etc. So, we did, and the process began. We met with the senior pastor and the pastor of ministries over lunch today, when we found out that they weren't really able to offer a staff position at this time, but they're definitely needing more support on the leadership front. The past few years, they have 2 committed leaders, but it's not their main job, so a lot of the planning tends to fall on the pastor and especially his wife - which they enjoy, but they're doing more than they'd like. So, they offered the possibility of pulling us on board to help fill out the gaps, at least, for a stipend pay for each service we'd lead. Which would be great for us - we've both been longing for a church that we could really call a church home - where we could really get involved and build relationships and all that good stuff. And this seems like a great place for us to do that. They mentioned some other areas of their ministry where they'd love some extra help - some worship-related, and some more community development related, but all of them would be great experience for me, especially given my masters program! And, Jeremy, too, of course. Since most of their worship people are only able to help out on a volunteer level or, if they're on "contract", they've still got lots of other things happening during the week, they've got some gaps which they were hoping we could fill. And, the pastor of ministries even said, "We don't want to lose you!" at one point, so I think they're glad to have us stick around. (And we are too!) And, while it wouldn't help pay the bills as well as a staff position would, it still helps us financially - anything is better than the nothing we've had so far! - and it gives us some great experience during our seminary training. Not to mention, I'll need some internships later on in my degree, and it will be much easier to figure that out when I have a church I'm committed to and involved in rather than a church I just go to and disappear every Sunday... So, it's good news.

Thanks for all the prayers and support everyone's given us before. I was reminded the other day just how powerful prayer really is as an agent of change - our God is good and his mercy endures forever.

an experiment in verbosity

I've noticed that my husband's blogs are much more eloquent than my own. Being that I am clearly the superior being, I cannot allow this atrocity to continue the pleasure of existence any longer. Thus, I have come to the decision that my posts must be brimming with grandiosity. I hope that's a word.

We have finished The Sopranos. Perhaps a number of you are not acquainted with this piece of television brilliance, but it is, in fact, brilliant. However, I cannot seem to comprehend the complexity of the final moments. Tragically, I cannot divulge the details of this sequence, because I am about to commence my commendation of the show to the entirety of my audience. (All four of you...) I plead with each and every one of you to watch this show. It is a thing of beauty, allowing the viewer an inside look into the underworld of organized crime in the form of the mafia, while instilling in all who are willing a love for these seemingly degenerate sociopaths. In fact, I even shed a tear when one of the protagonists met his untimely demise at the hands of a murderer. The Sopranos shows the viewer beauty in the midst of depravity. (Hey, that sentence actually held a little depth...)

Meanwhile, tomorrow marks the commemoration of the birth of my beloved canine companion, Sir Charles Watson the Valiant. He has enjoyed life for the entirety of one year. In order to herald his event, my husband and I intend to make our merry way to the lovely Old Pasadena, where an establishment named Three Dog Bakery resides. Here, furry friends can enjoy frosting, ice cream, and cookies created especially for "man's best friend." Following this, we intend to carry our pal to the dog park, a place where he can run and play and find joy in so doing, after which he will inevitably drift off to slumber, allowing us to complete our studies in peace.

And now, my friends, may you enjoy the rest of your activities in cyberspace. My time here has been completed, and I shall retire to my other tasks. Peace be with you.

(Whew! That was hard work...still. I win.)

You should probably feel bad for my dog.

Feel bad for me!

Poor Charlie's had a bad week.

First, we left him for Jeremy's green card interview in Detroit. He doesn't do well when we leave, and we were told he didn't eat for the 3 days we were gone. We were also told that every time he would be left alone in our apartment, he would howl for at least 15 minutes. (Well, "howl." For being a basset hound, he's not so good at howling. It's more of a really sad sounding bark. Still, I'm sure the neighbors loved it.)

Then, despite getting to play with his two new favorite dogs in the world, Huckleberry and Mona, while we were gone, the stress of being alone followed by the euphoria of being reunited with Jeremy and me set off his panosteitis. (For the non-dog-obsessed, panosteitis is basically really bad growing pains in a young dog's bones, and is really common in male basset hounds under 2 years old.) So, he was limping and whimpering and generally in pain within a short while of us coming home.

And, to add insult to injury, it turns out that Charlie is illergic to bees...well, probably bees. If not bees, some other mystery California bug that lurks in the grass. After taking him outside last night, Charlie's nose suddenly swelled up (Jeremy and I actually saw this in progress...), followed by lots and lots of doggy vomit. We went to the dog version of WebMD and thought it was something food related, especially since we gave him table scraps due to his not eating for 3 days while we were gone. So, we took him to the vet as soon as we could today, and learned that he was stung by a bee (or some other bug, but the vet thought it was a bee), which set off an allergic reaction. So, he got a shot and some pills, and is doing much better...although very groggy.

Poor puppy.

Legal Permanent Resident of the United States of America

We're approved!! The green card interview was surprisingly easy, and we're instantly approved and the actual card will come to us in the mail in 10 days. Such a HUGE relief!

It's finally setting in, I think. Although we're feeling sore and headache-y now that we can relax a little...but it's okay.

Jeremy is a Legal Permanent Resident of the United States of America!

Hooray!!