Rainey Days

Today I spent about an hour and half on www.monster.com , building a resume and a profile that potential employers could access. At the end of that long process, I came to a page that had six recommended jobs for me. At the head of the list: Cheesecake Factory Waitress or Line Cook. For this I learned a second language and got a Master's Degree?

For several months now, I've been leading a small group. I don't call it a small group; it's advertised as a weight-loss support group, but my motives were to reach people through a means other than church. Someone who has never been to church (or worse--has been burned in their church experience) usually stereotypes Christians to be weird or too narrow-minded or worse. They are often already prejudiced in their thinking, and they shy away from religious things. I think personal evangelism works best when they discover that a trusted and respected friend is a committed Christian. Then they have a face to put with the "Christian" definition, and they broaden their thoughts about church, Christ, and Christianity. The strongest evangelism methods have always been personal--from the day that Christ called his first disciple, face-to-face, and it remains the most effective way to reproduce faith in others. That's why I advertised my weight-loss group on a so...

For those of who that might be interested, I heartily recommend the Healthy Choice Chicken Fettcini Alfredo dinner. The alfredo sauce is very rich and creamy. It tasted great at lunch today, and I have to admit, I was surprised by how much I liked it (for a "diet" meal).

We live in a society that values knowledge. In fact, this is called the “Information Age,” where the internet provides wiki answers to any question you pose. With our 3G cell phones, we can access the internet and find information in seconds, while we’re mobile and unable to sit at a computer. More employees have higher degrees at this time than at any other in our nation’s history. “Knowledge is power!” Once uttered by Sir Francis Bacon, this sentence has become the mantra of children’s educational programming and public education initiatives. Dr. Joyce Meyer states, “ Give yourself permission not to know and be satisfied with knowing the One who does, ” in her book, I Dare You . For all the value we place on knowledge, we are still finite. We are limited in our understanding of the world around us, despite our quests to conquer that ignorance. And, if we can’t discover answers through science or research, we turn to psychics and horoscopes for knowledge that is beyond our ...

The Harundale Youth Sports parade on Saturday morning--gorgeous weather for it! Congrats to Corie, who designed and created the winning banner for Sydney's Blue Sharks team. Sydney plays in her first soccer game of 2009. The cold, windy weather didn't stop the kids from having a great time. On Sunday night, after an active weekend, we celebrated Sarah's 27th and Eric's 31st birthdays. Those candles didn't stand a chance with all the kids to blow out the candles.

My day started with a genuine New York City bagel, and I can still smell the savory "everything" bagels I'm bringing home to my family. I ran some errands with Cindy, here in sun-dappled Queens, where birds are singing in the warm weather. I did some shopping and we've spent a lot of time hanging out today, which has also been fun. I get to meet my friend's boyfriend in a little while; I've been waiting this whole trip for that! I get to grill him on his intentions, hint at future offspring, and ask pointed questions about the date of the wedding. Well, Cindy says I can't do any of that, but we'll see . . .

West Side Story is amazing. I spent the day downtown in New York, seeing one of my favorite musicals on Broadway as a matinee. The dancing is amazing, and the "revival" of the musical has some interesting changes that I enjoyed. Afterward we ate an early dinner at Helen's Stardust Diner, on 51st, in which Broadway hopefuls wait tables and sing show tunes in live performances. They dance on tables and crack jokes during musical interludes. The Old Fashioned Malted Milkshake I drank was wonderful, and we enjoyed the live performance of the young, talented wait staff. Walking along Broadway gave us a lot to laugh at, as usual. I can't even mention on this blog, in the name of good taste, half of the stuff we saw. We're sitting back in Queens now watching the sun set on a great day, and it was the best (late) birthday present I got this past year.

In a few minutes, I will be headed out to New York for a few days. I'm going to visit my good friend Cindy, who lives in Queens. We've got a big day planned tomorrow: seeing West Side Story on Broadway, followed by lunch and sightseeing in the City. I'm looking forward to my visit, since I will meet Cindy's serious boyfriend for the first time, as well as many other friends that I've heard her talk about over the years. I'll try to update the blog as I have time, but if I don't get to the computer for a couple of days, I'm sure you'll understand!

Well, I return to the blog after a few days of being so busy, I didn’t even check my email. I’m still busy, but I’ll give you an update. Yesterday I started a temp job for some family friends; I’ll be helping them operate a kiosk at the Marley Mall until Saturday night. (I’m the one with the flower stand by the food court.) It’s already been pretty interesting. Here’s what happened last night: 6:00 pm – I show up and get a quick lesson on the basics from my sister who’s been there all day. It’s going to be pretty easy, actually. 6:10 pm – I see some friends from church mall-walking so I chat with them for a few minutes. 6:30 pm – As I chat with the lady at the kiosk next to mine, she asks me if I recently graduated from college. Whoa! That makes my day and I almost break my jaw I’m grinning so much. 6:47 pm – Some guys from Hakky (the shoe repair place) walk by and say, “You’re new. We’ll come back and get to know you after work.” Ha! I bet these guys have a girl at every...

I would appreciate your prayers for me tonight as I travel to Pennsylvania and tomorrow as I interview for a position. I know that you have already been praying for me, and that makes such a huge difference! I had good friends pray with me today right in their living room that God would open the right doors for me. Today has been a busy day of preparation for this interview, but God has already provided well above what I could have ever imagined. I give Him all the credit for the blessings I've had today!

The Gospel doesn't change, but our methods do. Christianity has to be relevant to real life.