12 Days of Christmas :: Sanctuary

Day 3 :: I am grateful for our home.

We've worked really hard and intentionally about creative a safe place within the walls of our home. We really value HOME. As we've worked to transform our "married without kids" home into a borderline childproof house for 2 little ones, I've realized all the more how much I love our home. It's cozy. It's comfortable. It's safe. It's totally a reflection of who Brian and I are. It's a gift. It's nothing fancy or big, but it's definitely a space where I can walk in the front door, drop my bags, take a deep breath, and stay for a while.

Today I am grateful to bring Judah and Addise into that kind of home.

12 Days of Christmas :: My Calling

DAY 2 :: I am grateful for my calling and community.

I love my job at Newsong Church. I love who I get to work with. It's not a job so much as a calling, a place where I can bring my best and my worst. It's a place where my gifts are celebrated and explored and challenged. It's a place where I've grown considerably over the past 6+ years. It's a place I believe in so deeply because it's not just about who's "in", but it's more about who's "outside". It's a place the cares in word and action about the poor, widows, orphans, homeless, and the next generation. It's a place that embraces discomfort and pain and those who are different from you.

Today I am grateful that this place that I LOVE, also loves me as a pastor AND as a mom. I'm so grateful for the practical and generous ways they are gifting me with time away from my responsibilities in order to start off being a great mom. I'm grateful that the culture is one that values kids and will work with me to be an equally awesome pastor and mom. Indescribably grateful...

12 Days of Christmas :: Advent

Since today marks 12 days until we leave to get Judah and Addise, I decided [at 11pm...that's just how I'm working these days] that I'm going to post something I'm grateful for every day. It will serve as a countdown to getting our babies and a summary to the past 22 months of our adoption process.

Day 1 :: I am grateful for Advent.

Advent means "coming" or "arrival". It also implies waiting for the arrival and coming of the Messiah. This year, I'm grateful that our time to become parents has arrived. Two years ago this week we were mourning the news of another failed IUI treatment. We wondered if we would ever have a child. Christmas was more about Advent, about waiting, than it was about Christmas celebrations. We anticipated a Christmas where we could simply celebrate and not wait, not long for a baby's arrival, and anticipate healing.

This is that Christmas. We are filled with joy and celebration. And it has been worth the wait. I am grateful for the waiting because it has changed the way I celebrate, the way I cry, the way I understand others, the way I work, the way I rest. I am grateful for Advent, especially when Christmas is harder to celebrate.