From the monthly archives:
July 2010
“He refuses to exclude us. That is why He finally had to send Jesus.
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IN the Second World War, a group of soldiers was fighting in the rural countryside of France. During an intense battle, one of the American soldiers was killed. His comrades did not want to leave his body on the battlefield and decided to give him a Christian burial. They remembered a church a few miles behind the front lines that included a small cemetery surrounded by a white fence. They set out for the church….
A priest, his bent-over back and frail body betraying his many years, responded to their knocking. His face, deeply wrinkled and tan, was the home of two fierce eyes that flashed with wisdom and passion.
“Our friend was killed in battle and we wanted to give him a church burial.”
“I’m sorry,” he said, “but we can only bury those of the same faith here.”
Weary after months of war, the soldiers simply turned to way away. “But” the old priest called after them, “you can bury him outside the fence.”
Cynical and exhausted, the soldiers dug a grave and buried their friend just outside the white fence. They finished after nightfall.
The next morning, the entire unit was ordered to move on, and the group raced back to the little church for one final good-bye to their friend. When they arrived, they couldn’t find the gravesite. Tired and confused, they knocked on the door of the church. THey asked the old priest if he knew where they had buried their friend. “It was dark last night and we were exhausted. We must have been disoriented.”
A smile flashed across the old priest’s face. “After you left last night, I could not sleep, so I went outside early this morning and I moved the fence.“
Jesus did more than move the fence; he tore it down. No wonder he made the scribes and Pharisees nervous; fence makers do not like their fences torn down.”
(Michael Yaconelli, Messy Spirituality)
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Had a very raw and honest and long conversation with a group of women the other night. It was as if we were all telling the same story…although the details were very different.
We all talked about the sleeplessness, the restlessness, the pain of the process. It’s not easy.
But I do believe what is going on is God is moving our fences.
“I couldn’t sleep last night….so I went outside this morning and I moved the fence.”
I sat at the end of the room for a minute last night to photograph the jam session.
When I uploaded the pictures, I noticed a bit of a theme in all the pictures…
Uncle Nate preparing dinner. We essentially asked him to get started as soon as he finished cleaning up after lunch…. 
And Kora…whose eyes have mysteriously disappeared:
And bedtime:
The Dads were in charge of putting the kids to bed last night.
Looks like it went really well…..
“I will not leave you alone. You are mine. I know each of my sheep by name. You belong to me. If you think I am finished with you, if you think I am a small god that can keep you at a safe distance, I will pounce upon you like a roaring lion, tear you to pieces, rip you to shreds, and break every bone in your body. Then I will mend you, cradle you in my arms, and kiss you tenderly.”
(Brennan Manning)
“He who thinks that he is finished is finished. How true. Those who think that they have arrived, have lost their way. Those who think they have reached their goal, have missed it. Those who think they are saints, are demons.”
(Nouwen)
Andy and I seem to have hit an exhaustion wall.
Good thing…Gavin is still here to entertain the kids.
And Uncle Nate is here to cook for us. (He’s a brilliant house guest.)
I had a hard time this afternoon moving from this position.
Could someone please return my energy?
What Aunt Joanna and Uncle Taylor call a “Kora Sandwich.”
A new favorite….
This came in the email today from Iowa today and it happens to be 3 of my favorite people on the whole planet and I miss them.
When are we going back to Africa, girls??
Then girls night at Aunt Deborah’s with my sisters….
And being at Deborah’s house is like being in a magazine…complete with the big dog in a cute collar and the most divine homemade dessert.
I keep telling her to start a blog. She’s not listening.
“Take heart….even at the the unlikeliest moments. Fear not. Be alive. Be merciful. Be human. And most unlikely of all: Even when you can’t believe, even if you don’t believe at all, even if you shy away from the sound of his name, be Christ.”
(Frederick Buechner)
