And finally, a song.... written about friends....

Without You (Shawn McDonald)

Sometimes a man will ask, why did everything get taken away,
Before he realizes just how good he's got it made.
And please be there for what ya got,
Cause if you're not it just might pass you on by.
And you will find yourself standin' there, asking the question why...

And what would I do, if I did not have you?
And what would I say if I had no one to say it to?
Yes, I would be lonely without you.

Now I don't know how long I'll be around,
I'm traveling from town to town.
But let me take a moment at least, just how I feel inside.
And oh, my friends, it's been real and I love you all so.
No matter where I go, it's in my heart I held you close.

And what would I do, if I did not have you?
And what would I say if I had no one to say it to?
Yes, I would be lonely without you.

Yes, I would be so lonely without you.

So I haven't posted in a while, but have borrowed a friend's laptop for the day and am catching up a bit. Thus the multiple posts.

*Our Small Group is going really well. We are well into the book we decided to study, Ordering Your Private World by Gordan McDonald, and I'm enjoying it a lot more than I first anticipated. It discusses the difference in being a 'driven' person vs. a 'called' person. The last chapter we read talked about John the Baptist being called. McDonald writes: 'Why John? Because John responded. The call demanded submission to God's ways, God's methods, and God's criteria for success. And John was willing to accept those terms no matter what the cost to him in pain or loneliness.' That one really hit me.

*Our trip to Fortress a few weekends ago was a success. Only had 6 rowdy boys, but throw in red paint, a small fight, and the hippo song and we had our hands full! Had a great group go (pictures below) and spent the rest of the day in Ft. Worth after we finished up.





*Also enjoyed a very cold camping trip out at Lake Whitney State Park recently. Spent most of the weekend huddled around the fire, that is the burning of many whole logs... Worship time on Sunday morning, and of course the guys needed help rolling their tent up...

I can remember clearly the first time I got on a roller coaster. Or perhaps I should say the first time I was FORCED to ride one. Sea World. The Great White Shark coaster. State band trip junior year. That time when certain unnamed individuals literally picked me up and strapped me in for the ride. Me yelling, and I don't yell often. A scary trip of twists and turns. And ready to do it all over again by the end of the ride. The fear had been conquered.

Life has certainly been like a roller coaster ride lately. That's the greatest comparison I can come up with I guess. Freelancing is great in theory. Make your own schedule, pick your assignments, leave if you don't like it, pay is great. But downside is the inevitable waiting in between times, not knowing if you'll go 24 hours or two weeks before the next assignment. And so here I am in that up and down spot.

I've thought much about the fact that perhaps nothing full time has been thrown my way because God is wanting me to have flexibility right now. To be able to meet someone for lunch, to volunteer my time at will, and to be able to take off for a weekend when desired. And I'm starting to like this possibility. It could work out nicely to freelance through the summer and see what options I might be able to explore then. Cause I'm tired of thinking "I'll commit/do that when I have a full time consistent schedule and know what I'll be able to do." Seems like that's sorta backwards from how it should be. We're not guaranteed more time here, right? So this complacency and putting things off has got to go.

But the hard part are the off days. Should I be doing something completely different or just wait til the next assignment comes along? And so, I'm rushing down that huge hill right as you've just gone over the top of the Titan, time passing you by so fast that you don't know what's going on, can't see the bottom but know you'll hit it soon, wanting the ride to be over so you can get your senses back, yet enjoying it all the same, just flat not knowing what to do with yourself.