Exploration...

The girls and I went trail walking. Here's a little of what I saw...

Trust me...I know what I'm doing.

Last year in April I got to go to Spain on a short term mission trip…it was awesome! Click HERE to read a recap of my trip from last year. In mid-July, I’ll be heading back to Ibiza for 3 months.

If I’m being honest, I’ll admit that I’m both super excited and a little scared about going back to Ibiza. As I’ve been praying about my trip, one of my recurring prayers has been that God would give me the ability to look at people and really see them. Most of the time, I’m so wrapped up in my own life, and super focused on me, that it’s really easy for me walk past someone and just ignore their situation. I’ve just been asking God to let me see people like he does. I want to be bold, and I want to be able to see past the “public” face that most people put on. You know, the one we show other people when we’re trying to hide. I want to look at someone, and feel God’s heart breaking because He wants them to know how much he loves them. I want to be the vessel that God used to express that to them in both word and deed. As I’ve been praying about my trip, I’ve been hearing God speak to me…Trust me. For provision, and for guidance. Trust me for everything. I’m going to Ibiza this summer because I really feel like God is calling me to go. I know that he’s going to walk with me. And I believe that if I trust and am obedient, the Holy Spirit is going to lead me in every situation I find myself in. I keep thinking about the story in the bible when God tells Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac. The bible says that “early the next morning” Abraham got up and started on the journey to do what God had asked him to do. He did that trusting that God would provide. I want to have that same immediate obedience. I want to hear the Holy Spirit speak, and immediately set out to obey without a second of hesitation. No excuses, just obedience and surrender.

That’s one of my prayers for this summer, and for the rest of my life!

Viva Liberace!

One of my crazy sisters is OBSESSED with Liberace. So for Mother’s Day her kids decided that they would treat her to the official Liberace museum here in Las Vegas. She was thrilled, and I learned way more about this flamboyant performer then I ever wanted to! (the picture in the shorts is by far my favorite!)

Family at the Park...

Lost...the end

This past Sunday marked the end of one of my favorite shows of all time. I’ve watched from the very first episode. I distinctly remember the end of episode one when the castaways are all staring into the forest as the “monster” shows up for the first time. From that moment on, I was hooked. I know a lot of people feel strongly about the finale. Some loved it, and some hated it. I actually liked it a lot. It was deeply spiritual, and I’ve loved trying to wrap my head around what it all means. I still have it saved on my DVR, and I’m sure I’ll watch it several more times before I delete it. In the end, I’ll admit that there were a lot of questions that didn’t get answered. But in the last 10 minutes of the episode, I was in tears, and it just didn’t seem to matter to me anymore. As I watched Jack at the end of his journey, it hit me just how far he‘d come. From a man of science to a man of faith. If you haven’t seen the finale, you may not want to read any further as I’m about to share some of my favorite moments (in no particular order) -

1. Sawyer and Juliet’s awakening - so sweet and passionate. I was never a Kate and Sawyer fan, so I was pleasantly surprised when he and Juliet fell in love. It was good to see them re-united. Did anyone else catch that as they were embracing he whispers to her “I got you”? This was of course in reference to her death (falling down the well).

2. Kate tells Jack that she loves him. I thought Matthew Fox was in the acting zone during the finale. The look on his face, and his response just took my breath away. Also in the final church scene when Kate comes up to him and takes his hand, again his expression was just priceless. So full of just raw emotion.

3. Hurley asking Ben to be his 2nd. A major theme through out the series and the finale is redemption. And who needs it more than Benjamin Linus?! I loved seeing the look of awe and disbelief on his face as he finally gets the purpose he’s so desperately been longing for.

I think I’ve been so consumed this season with trying to figure out all the mysteries of the island that I lost sight of the fact that these people were a community. At the end of the finale that point was hammered home. The tears were definitely flowing as Jack steps into the church and you see his reaction to seeing his island companions. At that point it hit me that even with all of the crazy mysteries of the island (polar bears and all!) at its heart lost was about these people. It was about there individual journey’s of redemption, but also about each of their parts within this community that was forced upon them because of the crash of Oceanic 815.

If you’ve never watched LOST, I’d encourage you to get season one on DVD and get hooked!