Learning by Paradox

This is a prayer from The Valley of Vision that I came across today. It stuck out to me because the idea of paradoxes in the Christian life has been on my mind a lot as our staff team has been preparing for our Christmas conference, the theme of which is "paradox." I love how this speaks to the complexity of God's character and the way he uses trials, sin and sorrow to show us more of himself, not less. Everything good in me is a gracious gift from Him. So often I try and try to confine God into a box, to get him in a place where i can understand him. This reminds me that I am so glad he is not like I think he is! I am grateful that he is a God who is immeasurably more powerful, humble, gracious, and sovereign than I can imagine. This prayer reminds me of 1 Corinthians 1:27-29, which comes after the theme verse we are using for the conference (1 Cor. 1:18):

"But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God."

So here it is- hope it encourages you like it did me!

Lord, high and holy, meek and lowly,

Thou has brought me to the valley of vision,

where I live in the depths but see thee in the heights;

hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold

thy glory.

Let me learn by paradox

that the way down is the way up,

that to be low is to be high,

that the broken heart is the healed heart,

that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,

that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,

that to have nothing is to possess all,

that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,

that to give is to receive,

that the valley is the place of vision.

Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,

deepest wells,

and the deeper the wells the brighter

thy stars shine;

Let me find thy light in my darkness,

Thy life in my death,

that every good work or thought found in me

thy joy in my sorrow,

thy grace in my sin,

thy riches in my poverty

thy glory in my valley.

Highlights from the past month!

• Halloween- a few of us went trick-or-treating with the Josephs and the Creasmans. You can sort of see, but the kids were adorable- a lion, a dragon, and Elmo. It was so much fun! Our adult to child ratio was about 3:1, so we switched off the kids so that everyone could get some candy J

• We also had a Halloween party at our house for Furman students to come to. There were some great costumes- Juno, mail order brides, jazzercisers, a cow, and a polar bear, to name a few! My roommates and I dressed as a pumpkin patch:

• I painted my room! Maybe it wouldn’t be a highlight to some, but I am all about decorating and making things feel homey, so I’ve been dying to paint my room since I moved in. Definitely not a professional job, but with the help of a couple of my roommates we finished it pretty quickly!

• We had a staff women’s retreat for 2 days last week. Once a month, our entire regional staff team comes together in Greenville for an all-day meeting. I love these meetings because we get to see all the staff, but by the end of the day everyone is pretty exhausted. The staff women had the privilege of getting a 2 day retreat after our staff meeting this month! One of the families at the church has a beautiful lake house on Lake Keowee, and we went for 2 nights and had some time to rest and hang out with each other. It was huge for me- not only to get some time away and spend extended time with the Lord and with friends, but also to get to know some of the staff women better.

• The office team has been busy planning for our annual conference over the New Year holiday. Each year, we plan a 4 day conference for students to come to to get great teaching, connect with students from other campuses, and grow in their relationship with Jesus. I went to this conference all four years as a student and LOVED it. Not only did I always walk away having learned a ton, it is also one of the most fun weeks ever. Last year, we moved the conference from Atlanta to Washington, D.C., and we will be returning to DC this year! The theme of the conference is “Paradox,” taken from 1 Corinthians 1:18: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” If you are interested in learning more about the conference, the website is www.paradox2009.com.

• This weekend Jacqueline and I are driving up to Western Carolina to help with a women's retreat for one night. The retreat will focus on Jesus being ENOUGH for us- enough to satisfy all of our needs and desires, and how that influences all of our relationships and friendships. I am excited to get to spend some time around Western girls and experience their retreat with them!