“And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful.”

Colossians 3:14-15

Thanksgiving Day is upon us and I have so much to be thankful for.  Here are just a few things that come to my mind (in no particular order other than how they pop into my head):

God’s GRACE, MERCY, and LOVE!

Soft Kleenexes

Good Coffee and people who appreciate it

My family:

The humor of my brothers

The faithfulness of my mother

The support (and energy!) of my grandparents

Amazing TX friends who constantly remind me that I’m odd

A plane ticket to CA for December 22nd!

The Livingroom at La Jolla Cove and the knowledge that in a month I will spend a day there with Anissa

The technology that allows me to talk to friends in TX, CA, Vietnam, China, and Japan on the same computer screen at the same time – like right NOW!

Book shelves full of books!

Google Reader

Tortillas

Creative People

My ESV Study Bible (gifted to me a year ago by 14 of my fabulous friends!)

Sharpie Pens

Tazo Awake Tea tab fortunes: “Someone is planning a party for you!”

Scarves

The opportunity to watch God work in the nations!

The food that I will eat in 2 hours at the home of some great friends (Amber and Corrienne)

… and there is so much to tell you.  But I have no idea where to begin and I think it may take a while to get out all the stories and reflections that I have floating around in my head and heart.  So, have patience as I process and stick around because great stories are coming!

For now I will say that my friends and I (8 of us) spent 10 days making friends and hanging out with them as much as possible.  We wanted to learn about the culture and the people, and we did learn a lot!  Over ten days we spent time with somewhere around 50 people and built some really strong friendships.  We felt a great sense of urgency to share with each of them about the truth of the gospel of Jesus that has changed each of our lives and transcends all borders and cultures.  Before we left 14 of them had weighed the cost and chosen to follow Jesus.   It was incredible to see hearts and lives transformed.  (And I need to add some emphasis here… it was absolutely INCREDIBLE!!!!!!!!)  Many others are continuing to seek truth and I will pray and believe that they will choose to follow Jesus in the future!

If I had to boil down, in one short snippet, all that I learned and am learning from this experience I would say:  I believe the gospel more today than I did two weeks ago.  I am humbled by the grace God has poured out on me and I love to see that grace poured out on others.  I am saddened by the many moments of my life that are driven by anything but the truth and beauty found in the person of Jesus Christ.  I rejoice that despite my endless imperfections and well, let’s just call them what they are – sins! – the Creator of the universe has chosen me as His child and has sent me to be an instrument to water and plant seeds that He will bring a harvest from.  I have a deeper longing to know God more and to make God known more – and along with that a deeper sense of my reliance on Him for all good things.

“So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God who has mercy.”  Romans 9:16

P.S.   I often use the term “favorite” to mean simply… “I like it a lot!” and not necessarily to mean “I like it more than anything else!”  I don’t know which I mean when I say that Asia is my favorite continent.  I like home.  I love home, really.  But there is something about Asia that makes something about me come alive in a way that no where else does.  That doesn’t mean that I love it more than home.  I don’t know that I could love anywhere more than home.  I guess it means simply that God has placed deep in my heart a desire to be a part of his work in that region of the world and when I’m there I know, “I was made for this!”

I just watched this crazy reality tv show that’s filmed in the area I live in.  One of the girls on it is actually a customer of mine.  She seems like a sweet girl.  She’s always friendly and pleasant.  I saw a commercial for the show and thought — hey… I know her.  So the next time I saw her, I asked about it and told her I’d have to watch it.  She said, “No, please don’t.  It’s embarrassing.  We filmed at the beginning of the summer and now I’m having to relive all the drama over again.”

I tivoed it, of course.  As you watch the show you see drama… money… drama… possessions… drama… social status… DRAMA!  And I realize it’s reality tv and that reality tv is rarely, if ever, actually reality… but I also know that though it may be embellished and edited to get higher ratings, it’s still real video footage that does, at least somehow, reflect these people’s lives.  And I see why she’s embarrassed.

And tonight after watching it I thought… How would I feel if a camera followed me around during my worst moments? Om… yeah… No thank you.  What in my life would I be embarrassed to see on TV? I could write a list… and the thing is…

I want to live a valuable life – one that matters in eternity – one that pleases my Creator.  And there are things I need to change.  It’s easy to watch a show about people who are very different than I am and point out all the insanely wacked out priorities in their lives… It’s harder to look at my own life and do the same thing…

Yesterday I read a little bit of The Journals of Jim Elliot. I was encouraged and challenged by two prayers he prayed…

“Lord, I want to be centering my interest on Thee… Be then revealed to me that my desires might be fixed on the primary thing.”

and

“God, I pray, light these idle sticks of my life and may I burn up for Thee.  Consume my life, my God, for it is Thine.  I seek not a long life but a full one like Yours, Lord Jesus.”

So this week, my challenge is to remain focused on the primary thing and to be consumed by Him… living a full life…

And that is my random ramblings for the night. 

I have a lot of dreams.  I always have.  They’ve not always been the same dreams though.  And I get new ones all the time… Sometimes when I share a new one with a person named Jenny Cummings, she calmly and seriously replies… “Are you even a real person?”  I am.  I might be odd… but I am very much real.  I pinched myself, so I know.  I’m real, AND I’m awake.

But something amazing is happening… something I delight to give all credit to my Creator for…

I used to dream of being a teacher while also finding time to become famous for both singing and painting…

I used to dream of fancy houses, ball gowns, and frequent dinners that require a multitude of forks…

I used to dream of shiny things and lots and lots of them… and weddings (mostly mine – which would clearly be full of such shiny things and paid for by a rich dude who was going to take me on his fancy business dinners for the rest of our lives… )

I used to dream of kids, who I would dress in the latest trendy outfits and take on vacations to Europe where we would stay in the finest hotels…

I used to dream of living on the beach and having picnics everyday of my life…

I used to dream of making a name for MYSELF…

Now I dream of leaving it all behind and going to a nation that needs to hear about Jesus…

Now I dream of living in an RV or trailer and traveling around the country serving other people…

Now I dream about how intense it could be to share life with some dude who is as crazy as me… and all the damage (in the good sense of the word) we could do together… but I also dream of what my life will look like if I’m doing it solo forever… and I find both dreams to be worth dreaming of…

Now I dream of adopting children who would never know unconditional love otherwise…

Now I dream of finding creative ways to teach people all these crazy things I am learning about giving our lives away to the One who will give us true life in return…

Now I dream of going to the beach frequently, or so, and having picnics on a regular basis… enjoying God’s creation and recharging for the next adventure…

Now I dream about bringing attention to the glory of JESUS name…

AND IT’S ALL BECAUSE OF WHO HE IS.

I can’t guarantee which of the dreams will remain and will be lived out.  But that last one… it’s the most important and I’m committed to seeing it through… thanks to Jesus, who saved me and continues to change me, bigger dreams are being dreamed… and bigger adventures are being lived… and I’m loving it!!!

Just got an email from a friend with some challenging words.

A Charles Spurgeon quote:

“Every Christian here is either a missionary or an impostor. Recollect that. You either try to spread abroad the kingdom of Christ, or else you do not love him at all. It cannot be that there is a high appreciation of Jesus and a totally silent tongue about him.”

So we must ask ourselves: am I going to live as a missionary or an impostor?

Smart creativity.  I like it.  I want to know how much time and planning went into making it.  I also want to know what the song is about.    Watch and wonder.

I love words.  Here are some great ones I’ve read this week.  I can’t get them out of my head, nor do I want to.

“I am not worthy of the least of all the deeds of steadfast love and all the faithfulness that you have shown to your servant.” – Jacob’s prayer in Genesis 32:10

“The Spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions, and the nearer we get to Him, the more intensely missionary we become.” ~ Henry Martin

“This is also a check on the heart: Am I desperate for something that God can put His character behind? A lot of selfish desires die when we align ourselves with God’s will, wanting what He wants.” (from Desire Spiritual Growth blog)

“…much of the Christian life is spent trusting Jesus now and understanding him later. Jesus typically does not feel it necessary to explain on the front end why he is doing something the way he is doing it.” (from Desiring God blog)

“We are not going to move this world by criticism of it nor conformity to it, but by the combustion within it of lives ignited by the Spirit of God.” – Vance Havner

Okay.  I haven’t blogged in over a month.  There must be something wrong with me.  But don’t worry friends.  I’m here now.  There are two things that have been dominating my thoughts today: prayer and food.  I don’t have a lot to say about the latter, I just like to eat it.  So I think I will blog about prayer.

I started reading through the book of Acts today.  I always learn a lot about prayer – its power and importance – from this book.  It’s definitely an underlying current that moves throughout it.  As I thought about that today, I was reminded that prayer is not just an underlying current that runs through the book of Acts; it is an underlying current that runs through the entire history of the church.  When people pray, God acts.

Acts 1:16 says, “All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer…”  The word devoted stands out to me.  So… I went to dictionary.com and looked it up.    Devoted: zealous or ardent in attachment, loyalty, or affection.  Devote: to give up or appropriate to or concentrate on a particular pursuit, occupation, purpose, cause, etc.   Then I asked myself… does that characterize me and my prayer life?  my bible fellowship class? my church?  the global church?  My answer was:  sometimes, but not all the time.  And that is not enough.  So, why not all the time?  And what made the church in Acts come together in one accord and devote themselves to prayer?

I think the key was they were waiting in expectation for something God had promised.  They wanted it.  They longed for it.  They needed it. –> The Holy Spirit.  Jesus last words to them had been “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”  He’d also instructed them that until the Holy Spirit arrived, they were to wait in Jerusalem.  So they gathered together to wait and they devoted themselves to prayer.

Maybe that’s what I/we lack sometimes… a focused waiting in anticipation for God to do what He has promised He will do.  Sometimes our vision gets so focused on the present that we forget that this is what we’re to be waiting for:   “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of a trumpet of God.  And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.  Therefore encourage one another with these words.”  (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18) and  “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’” (Revelation 7:9-10)

What would be different if rather than waiting, hoping, and longing for our next paycheck, next relationship, next social event, next vacation, next reward… we were waiting, hoping, and longing for the return of Christ and the day when every nation, tribe, and people stands before His throne?  I think it would be amazing!

Warren Wiersbe wrote “Prayer is both the thermometer and the thermostat of the local church, for the ’spiritual temperature’ either goes up or down, depending on how God’s people pray.”  I think I’m ready to see the spiritual temperature go up… in my own life… in my community… and in the world.

I think step one is: pray for a perspective that reflects God’s perspective… an eternal perspective… a kingdom perspective… and then keep praying with that perspective shaping our prayers.

In case you’re curious what is going on in the life of Shanda Conger these days… Here’s an update for you!

1. My final semester of Seminary is in progress… and it only involves 1 class!  And it’s the easiest class of my entire degree.  Yeah.  Kind of awesome.  I do still have random tinges of fear that there is some detail that is not going to work out and they will keep me in Seminary world FOR-E-VER!  But that’s not very likely.

2. With that information will come the inevitable … “So, what’s next?”    The answer is… We’ll all just have to wait and see!    But… Here is what I do know.

3. I’m preparing to GO!  And the GOing will probably take place about a year from now… ish.

4. How am I preparing to GO?  Well… by paying off debt for one thing.  (My goal is to be debt free a year from now… or as close to that as possible!)  And to do that… I’m starting a second job on the 14th.  I will be Shanda the Nanny by day and Shanda the Barista by night/weekend.

5. I intend to continue these things after I graduate for a while (an undetermined length of time probably adding up to a few months-ish).  I realize it’s strange to have a graduate degree and work as a barista and nanny… but I am strange… and it’s all a step in a process of living the dreams God has put in my heart which do not really include any sort of prestigious position, but do include living in places in which I am able to influence others for the glory of God… and for now I believe those places are as a barista and a nanny.  AND because I do intend to GO I can’t start a new job requiring me to STAY after graduation.

6. Why do I keep typing GO in capital letters?  Because I’m really excited about the potential wrapped up in those two letters.

7. Where will I GO?  My current thought is somewhere in Asia… and as you are hopefully aware… I’m going to China in November for 12 days.  I’m praying and believing that it will be a pivital trip for me in some way.  What that means… I can’t tell you yet (because I don’t know).

8. Who am I Nannying for?  I currently work with an awesome girl named Kristen.  She’s going to be leaving my store (Starbucks) soon to be a manager of one close to my (and her) house.  She and her husband have two beautiful little girls – Kennedy (3) and Kylie (almost 1).  I’ve had the privilege of watching them from time to time over the last few months and have really enjoyed it.  I was planning on applying to be a substitute teacher but when Kristen decided to go back to working full time… this just kind of happened!  It’s really quite perfect for all of us! (And I’m certain it will provide many stories for the blog!)

9. I’m going to be teaching Adult ESL classes at my church on Saturday evenings starting this Saturday!  I’m very excited about this as it’s really right up my ally… but I’m nervous because I’m teaching the low-beginner level (something I’ve never done) and I’ve never taught ESL to adults… but still, that is exciting because God’s strengths show up in our weaknesses.

10. My friend Erwin McManus once wrote: “I want my life to be defined by what I give.  So many moments are lost when we’re looking only for what we can get.”  I agree.

…to live a life that is an adventure.  But no matter how adventurous it is… there will always be monotony.  Laundry always has to be done.  Dishes always have to be washed.  Cars always have to be filled with gas (mine does anyway).  Bills always have to be paid.  No matter how much you love your job, there will always be parts of it that bore you to death … and you still have to do them.

I’ve been reminded this week – over and over in different ways and places – that God desires to be a part of EVERY aspect of our lives.  He wants to be a part of the day to day business of life just as much as he wants to be a part of the big adventures.  He has purpose for the monotony as well as for the spectacular moments.

I think these verses speak to that…

Colossians 3:17  “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

I Peter 4:10-11  “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace:  whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ.  To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”

SO, I’m discovering that when we seek the LORD and His glory in those smaller moments of life… they suddenly become bigger… and more… adventurous!

With Jesus… there is adventure to be found in the monotony.

I like that.