These past two weekends have been great! Packed full of goodness which is fabulous as it has been very much needed. We decided to spend our 15th anniversary apart. No, wait….that sounded bad.
We were together the actual DAY of it, you see but had plans for the entire weekend that didn’t involve one another. We started the weekend together in Omaha and then went our separate ways. You see I had got tickets to Women of Faith months ago to go with a bestest girlfriend. This is where things got tricky (more comical than anything because you have to KNOW Adam-he’d never, ever want to hurt my feelings). Adam came home one weekend awhile back wanting (nervously) to ask me what I thought about him going on this 4 day hiking/camping trip with a bunch of Christian guys in WY. The catch? “Ummmmm”, he said…..”it is over our 15th.” I’m all Dude! No problem! I’m leavin’ town myself so go for it! Totally caught him off guard and for about 3 minutes he looked like a little kid in a candy store.
Fast forward and he ended up not going camping but I still ditched him. For Women of Faith. But he made his own different fabulous plans, too. Missy and Jason lived in Tecumseh while we were there and left around the same time we did last year only they went South~to Tulsa. Missy is who I went to WOF with and Jason and Adam spent the weekend together re-living some of their favorite childhood (ahem, early 30’s) memories (such as a going fishing, geo-caching, getting a 12-pack and gaming for 24 hours straight-that would be a 12-pack of OATMEAL CREAM PIES!). Missy and Jason are a couple that inspires Adam and I. They are strong in faith, no matter what which always amazes me because that is where I am weakest. They are funny so you can’t NOT have a side ache from laughing while with them and they have 3 beautiful kids that they are raising and Missy, in fact is getting ready to start homeschooling this fall….something I am so very proud of her!
You may not know it....but that look in my eyes that is making them look all squinty and weird: PURE fatigue (read more below about the whole whacko backo!!)
Jason, Missy, Adam & I
Jason being the grown man-child that he is (a great big ball of fun!)
So even though we have had some things on our minds (Adam and I) and I have a defective back (long story but the short version now involves me sleeping on the queen size guest mattress on the floor in our bedroom while Adam is still sleeping on the king set in that there same said room) we have been re-fueled these past two weeks.
WOF was amazing. I will post another snippet about it with some more pics and stories. There were a few things I wish were different but overall….I NEEDED that two days. It was very good for me. I have one story for this post and it involves Sandi Patty. I’ve never heard her sing before and she was amazing. We had fabulous seats-4th row! It just so happens that those who were hearing impaired were only two sections to our left. Sandi sang “We Shall Behold Him” and while she did she signed it too. While she was doing this she was facing the section where the hearing impaired folks were. Her voice was booming through the arena and her sign language was so very animated. People, I cannot even begin to describe to you how it felt at that moment. God’s presence was there for sure. All of those folks were signing back to her the song as well. It was beautiful. Can you imagine how if it touched and moved me the way it did…..what she must have done for the hearing impaired folks? Apparently she does this….sign while singing at times, that is.
Sandi signing while singing....
Later she said a quote that I love. It was something to the effect that when we don’t get what we want, it may not be that He is saying no to our dream; it may be that He is saying yes to a dream that we have not had yet. Kind of reminds me of that country song….”some of God’s greatest gifts~are unanswered prayers”. Anyways, she touched me and refueled me a tad.
Last night we volunteered for World Vision. We had been contacted a couple of months ago as we sponsor Abdiel still and they asked if we would be able to volunteer at an upcoming concert. Sure! Our duties were minimal and were good but the concert…..Casting Crowns. You guys, they were amazing! They are fantastic worship leaders and their new song that is coming out “Come to the Well” is beautiful. I hate to write this but it is true: the presence of God was in that arena last night in Kearney more than I felt it the majority of time in Omaha at the Qwest Center during WOF (kind of what I’ll elaborate on more later). If you ever, ever get a chance to go to Casting Crowns…..do. You’ll feel re-fueled. Pinky-swear.
After returning home from the concert (I look tired and Adam, um....well, looks....twitterpated maybe??)
Our World Vision friendship bracelets (80s flashback!!!) & VOTA band. They were the opening band and are from Lincoln-they were great!
