Do you ever have the feeling that life is a strange trip and you're just along for the ride? That is exactly how I felt this week while driving around in my Dad's Lexus and enjoying all the bells and whistles. I felt like a fish out of water. There is something very ironic about a school teacher/pastor's wife in a luxury automobile. The timing of this purchase is not lost on me as it is also the week of the Teach ONE mission trip in Zambia, which I was a part of last year. My thoughts and prayers are with the teachers working in the compounds of Lusaka (wishing I was with them!) as they minister to children without even the most basic luxuries-- beds, electricity, food and water. There is additional irony as Kyle and I just decided we would like for our whole family to serve in some capacity in Zambia over the next few years. I even had this fleeting idea: I could sell this car to pay for most of that expense. While this might sound like a genius idea, I don't plan to give up Dad's car any time soon. With a 3rd driver on the horizon, I will continue to enjoy God's surprising blessing and provision for our family.
Even this morning, another strange tension follows us as we leave for vacation in Crested Butte, the location of my Dad's accident last summer. There is something odd about the combination of vacation and returning to the place where we tragically lost my father. While Mom, John and I have returned to the CB home on different occasions, Kyle and the girls said their last goodbye to Dad in the Colorado driveway at the end of their last visit. The blessing of time in "paradise" will be mixed with painful memories and feelings as everything will remind us of him.
Whether, humorously driving my Dad's fancy car or sadly remembering him in the place he loved most on earth, I'm determined to enjoy the luxury of vacation and a fine automobile as gifts from God for our good and his glory. Faith in Christ is the most unfathomable blessing of all. "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." 2 Corinthians 5:21
Friday, June 28, 2013
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
One Year: A Changed Look and Perspective
Both photos show Zambian children on the the road in Lusaka surrounded by hopeless poverty. The impoverished road represents the brokenness of the world where we all live. The previous picture was dark, profoundly serious and inactive with children thoughtfully observing the camera and their surroundings. The new photo shows eager and joyful children in active pursuit of our vehicle on my first drive through the compounds of Lusaka. While the circumstances and environment are the same, the posture and perspective of the individuals is completely different.
For the last 12 months and 42 blog posts, I have had a most serious and observant posture as I have been on the receiving end of Christ's sustaining grace and as He has stretched me in new ways. (Similar to how my grandfather would let me stand on his feet while leading me in a dance.) The first photo shows this perspective in my thoughts and writing. However, the counselor's question leads me to consider this: What am I doing to "feed my soul" as I travel the difficult road of life? This requires an active pursuit of Christ and knowing Him more intimately in the midst of joy and suffering. It's time to "dance" along beside him as if stepping off of my grandfather's toes to participate more fully. As we closed out our discussion, the counselor wrapped up with some questions relating to my roles in life and this particular season as wife, mother, minister's wife and teacher, obviously showing how Christ knows my weakness in every way and has experienced all of it in the flesh, yet without sin. As I consider another year of writing, my hope and prayer (and active pursuit) will be to seek Christ in all things. It is encouraging to have you follow this journey with me.
"For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority." ....... "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory."
Colossians 2:9 and 3:1-4
Monday, June 17, 2013
The Selfie
Sometimes I feel a blog coming similar to a growing appetite for some kind of food. Much of the time God is stretching me or lifting my eyes to Him as my only refuge and fortress in the storms of life. Well, this post is different; it stems from a recent pet peeve. When I mentioned the subject to Kyle, he said, "Be careful." I will attempt to be "fair and balanced" like our favorite news show-- Special Report With Bret Baier.
Raising (beautiful) teenagers in an internet saturated world overwhelms and stresses me. While I'm active enough on Facebook and a stalker on Twitter, the social media choices are too much for this one track minded Mama. Instagram, Vine and Snap Chat are other popular tools for our girls. Thankfully, Kyle is all in with social media and keeps a close eye on their activity. It seems negligent for parents to be "anti-social media" while their children are actively using such things. But I digress....
In an effort to keep tabs on Instagram use, I have a weekly stalking time where I borrow one of the girls i-pods and scroll the feed for each of them. This often results in much drama throughout our house. Frankly, our girls hate this ritual and I do too! The most debated topic in these weekly sessions includes "THE SELFIE" and "Selfie Sunday" really gets me going! For those of you without teenagers, a "Selfie" is a photo taken of oneself and then posted on the internet for the world to see. It is an all too common practice with our youth today. My take on the Selfie is less than charitable: Look at me world. Look how beautiful I am. If you like my picture, I will be encouraged. If hundreds of you like my picture, I will even feel more valuable or worthwhile. If you don't like my Selfie, then I will likely remove it with some sense of discouragement. I'm being crass to make a point. My girls have heard this lecture dozens of times, but the Selfies are alive and well in the Oliphint home and they are not forbidden. Many of you smile knowingly as you are fellow Instagram users with my girls.
Having grown up without a computer or the internet, teenagers in my day were limited to the car visor and rear view mirror to inspect themselves. We were left wondering what others thought without the constant "feedback" about our images. I'm not saying we were any less self-consumed or immature, but we didn't have the internet to fuel our insecurity. Sometimes it all seems too much for parents to get their minds around, especially considering how quickly things change and how clueless many of us feel in the social media world. I'm convinced we need to keep up and be active, because it's here to stay in one form or another.
As a mother, hoping to raise strong, God fearing, modest and humble girls, how do I navigate and regulate internet use with wisdom and grace? I have no idea. The teenage years require mercy and patience beyond me. However, daily I return to the Lord with my foolishness and pray for more grace and wisdom. My greatest desire is for the girls to love and honor the Lord, but I'm all too aware they must see this in their mother first of all. Ugh.... that's the rub. It's easier for me to regulate and control than for me to constantly point them to the gospel where Christ continually pursues me in the midst of my insecurity and weakness. May Christ's abundant mercy and steadfast love continue to transform our hearts. "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised."
Raising (beautiful) teenagers in an internet saturated world overwhelms and stresses me. While I'm active enough on Facebook and a stalker on Twitter, the social media choices are too much for this one track minded Mama. Instagram, Vine and Snap Chat are other popular tools for our girls. Thankfully, Kyle is all in with social media and keeps a close eye on their activity. It seems negligent for parents to be "anti-social media" while their children are actively using such things. But I digress....
In an effort to keep tabs on Instagram use, I have a weekly stalking time where I borrow one of the girls i-pods and scroll the feed for each of them. This often results in much drama throughout our house. Frankly, our girls hate this ritual and I do too! The most debated topic in these weekly sessions includes "THE SELFIE" and "Selfie Sunday" really gets me going! For those of you without teenagers, a "Selfie" is a photo taken of oneself and then posted on the internet for the world to see. It is an all too common practice with our youth today. My take on the Selfie is less than charitable: Look at me world. Look how beautiful I am. If you like my picture, I will be encouraged. If hundreds of you like my picture, I will even feel more valuable or worthwhile. If you don't like my Selfie, then I will likely remove it with some sense of discouragement. I'm being crass to make a point. My girls have heard this lecture dozens of times, but the Selfies are alive and well in the Oliphint home and they are not forbidden. Many of you smile knowingly as you are fellow Instagram users with my girls.
Having grown up without a computer or the internet, teenagers in my day were limited to the car visor and rear view mirror to inspect themselves. We were left wondering what others thought without the constant "feedback" about our images. I'm not saying we were any less self-consumed or immature, but we didn't have the internet to fuel our insecurity. Sometimes it all seems too much for parents to get their minds around, especially considering how quickly things change and how clueless many of us feel in the social media world. I'm convinced we need to keep up and be active, because it's here to stay in one form or another.
As a mother, hoping to raise strong, God fearing, modest and humble girls, how do I navigate and regulate internet use with wisdom and grace? I have no idea. The teenage years require mercy and patience beyond me. However, daily I return to the Lord with my foolishness and pray for more grace and wisdom. My greatest desire is for the girls to love and honor the Lord, but I'm all too aware they must see this in their mother first of all. Ugh.... that's the rub. It's easier for me to regulate and control than for me to constantly point them to the gospel where Christ continually pursues me in the midst of my insecurity and weakness. May Christ's abundant mercy and steadfast love continue to transform our hearts. "Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised."
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