Santa Claus Is Coming 2 Town!!

Christmas Cheer!!

362 days till Christmas

Another Christmas has come and gone. The hype building up to it seems crazy when you think that the main event happens in one day. Maybe we should make Christmas a 3 day event. But seriously there is a lot of hype leading up to the event...shopping trips, wrapping, finding sales, baking cookies, baking pies, inviting guests, planning out the day, keeping secrets, visits to Santa (if you're 4 or 24), hiding presents, cleaning house, decorating, writing cards and the list goes on. There is a lot of prep and a lot of "cheer" passed around. Okay some of the "cheer" is fake because we feel the need to be polite towards others...good will towards men. And in the midst of all this shuffle lies the real reason many celebrate Christmas. The birth of Christ. Hope came into the world. A hope that transcends all with a love so deep that it had to come into this world so innocent--as a baby. I guess with all the prep for the holiday season, it's easy to miss the true meaning of Christmas. And with only 362 days until the next time we celebrate this festive season, we shouldn't be so quick to forget the birth of Christ. Hope had come into the world and that was just the beginning.

All In The Family

This is my gingerbread family!

(Top Row L-R): Mark--He has a heart for people and a towel for whipping them with. Brenda--She is wearing her green apron and has a croqueting yarn in her left hand. Jon--He is our little drummer boy. Jolene--I am sporting Christmas clothes and have a Guinness in one hand. (Bottom Row L-R): Fra--He is adorning a cup of tea in one hand and guitar in the other. Matthew--He is wearing lovely red trousers and loves the simplicity of life. Jeremy--He is rocking out to a tune on the guitar. Erika--Her squiggle is free outside the red box.



My gingerbread neighbor. Martin--He thinks he is Jesus so I made him and the Christmas Angel--The one who appeared to the shepherds who were watching their flocks by night.

wellie warmers and warm welcomes....sounds cheesy but its true!!

So last night may have absolutely been my favorite evening here yet. Okay all around there have been outstanding memories but let me tell you about last night. Martin, our friend down the road kicked off this great memory by surprising the household with Christmas gifts. He was very intuitive and got everyone something that he or she would enjoy. And for me, he gave me a pair of Wellie Warmers!!! (For those of you who don't know what Wellies are, they are Wellington boots that are rubber and come up to you knees. You wear there them to work outside in the garden, yard or to play in the woods or bog. They protect you from water and mud.) Anyways, I love Wellies and love wearing them. So this was perfect. You take the Wellie Warmers and heat them up in the microwave or oven then place them into your boots before wearing them out. They also work in regular shoes. Well as a gift to Martin from Mark & Brenda, they gave him a Zippo Lighter. Martin was ecstatic. So we decided to test our new gifts. We grabbed some tea, heated my Wellies up with the Warmers then went outside to have some fags (cigarettes) using his new Zippo. Great craic there! Later Mark, Brenda, Matthew & I went down to Tim and Anne's to bring them Christmas treats. Well, another neighbor Joe ended up joining us and we sat there in the living room around the fire laughing, talking and having some serious craic. We went down around 9:30 and left after midnight. Last night really reminded me of how much I love Ireland and the people in it. The art of conversation is great here and the Irish really know how to enjoy one another's company. From Wellie Warmers, to being known by someone up the road, to having others try to set you up with an Irish farmer.....priceless. Last night... I don't think I will ever forget. Cheers!

have you ever..

Have you ever had an urgent need to tell someone something? Or have wanted to run an idea by a person? Or have you ever just needed to know that someone was around? I have. There are 7 people in our house and always someone nearby if you just need to talk. This is great for me as I am very much a people person. I get re-energized by being around others. The beauty of this community is the grace that comes alongside it. Even if I completely make an idiot of myself or act like a dork, I am still loved and accepted as is. My close community here will be ending soon as I get ready to head back to the US in 3 weeks. A new community will be created with the friends and family I left behind. But creating a community of friends and people you can trust doesn’t come easily. It requires everyone being honest, respectful and even vulnerable. I am not even sure I am any of those things. However, I am convinced that this is how we were created. We were meant to “do life” with one another. The early church modeled close friendships and community. They ate together, worshipped together, asked questions and doubted God with one another. They were open, real and authentic. I am reading a book about having an environment where people can be real and open about life. They can ask questions, explore faith, learn about life and be themselves with no worries about what others will think about them or how they will be perceived. Have you ever wanted to just be loved for who you are, not who you used to be or could be? Have you desired to kick and scream and just be allowed to do that? Have you ever wished someone was near enough to share a really dry joke with and then laugh at it? I wish the church was this. I wish the Body of Christ was known for this everywhere. Not just in some towns or some countries but all over the world. Have you ever wished things were different? Have you ever had to desire to change it? Have you ever taken the initiative to do so?

Parker, Jeremy: Intern 4.3

Oh Jeremy! Where do I begin? LOL You have made life here in Ireland so much more enjoyable. I am going to miss you and your slags, your random movie quoting, the crazy rap songs you create out of your arse, being burned with a tea spoon, stories of my swiffer children, how this singer is related to that actor and which music video he was in, making Shepard's pie or chips and sausages together but mainly your heart. You have a nothing but love and grace for people and it's cool and respectable. Ireland and this house will never be the same. :) So now that you are stateside, have fun slagging the Hoosiers, burning your mom with a tea spoon and chillin' with friends from the snowy, cold Midwest.

the tangled web we weave

How do you write about love and judgment when all you want to do is do just that, love and judge? We were asked to write about what we have learned from the book Repenting of Religion by Gregory Boyd. We were to also include what has challenged me or has been sand paper on skin as Mark put it. I guess the thing that I learned or that stuck out to me is how easy it is to get caught up in the game of judging others. In general, I am not a very judgmental person. However, the judgment game shifts when certain things become personal. The sand paper on the skin is recognizing where I am weak and then working to not become the very thing I hate. Nobody likes to admit that they are not faultless or that they are capable of hurting others including those who may have already done harm to you or the people you love.
I find the intertwining of love and judgment so tangled in the church and in my life. I don’t want to be a part of the realm of judging others based upon what I see and what I personally believe to be good or evil. I have seen and experienced the negative effects personally. It is so easy to jump into the game of judging the “religious” or “Pharisees” but then I become just like them judging them against my own standards. I would rather love them unconditionally and celebrate in the triune fellowship with them. What I want to do is love but the more I desire this, the more I find I am not sure I know how to love. Paul got it right when he said that he wants to do right but then he does what he doesn’t want to do. I want to love like Jesus but due to my fallen nature I am a tangled web of love and judgment which are constantly fighting.
Trying to root out the judgments in my life is a learning process. I may never get it completely right but by His grace I know I am forgiven. I know I am in need of His unconditional love. I know His heart is for me to love Him and then to reflect His love unconditionally to the world. But how do you do that when your very nature screams to love and to condemn?
They say that you learn from experience. Based upon my experiences, I know how it feels to be on the receiving end of judgment. And I know how it is to be on the receiving end of grace, mercy and love. When thinking about my life and knowing that love, grace and mercy have helped to mend my wounds and have allowed me to grow as a person, my desire to reflect God’s love, grace and mercy to others trumps the very desire to judge even the most accusing judgers.

Christmas Decorating- Trees & Cookies

Germany Memories

Our first taste of German sausages! (L-R): Jon, Matthew, Erika, Paschal

View of Munich, Germany

Christkindle Market by night

Hofbrauhaus (L-R) Mark, Jon, Jeremy, Matthew

Live Barvarian Music at the Hofbrauhaus

Deutchland Craic

What do you get when you combine 6 Americans, 3 Irish and a love for craic and mulled wine? You get 4 eventful days in Germany! :) We just got back a few days ago from a Christmas trip to Germany. It was amazing! We had loads of fun and I really enjoyed spending time with everyone. This rowdy group consisted of: The fabulous Mark & Brenda Ray, the sweet squiggle Erika, the comedian Jeremy, cheeky Martin, cool Jon, fun-loving Matthew, awesome Paschal and laughing Jolene! We traveled to Munich & Nuremberg visiting the Christmas Markets, drinking mulled wine out of boot mugs, shoveling loads of German sausages into our mouths, ooohhing and aaahhing over the intricate Christmas decorations, visiting beer halls, exploring churches and concentration camps, laughing and wishing it would snow! Yes the craic was mighty and the amount of meat and carbs was incredible! Traveling with people you love really allows you to appreciate others and the love for your friends and family grows. Prior to the trip, Jon and I were talking about the trip and we were both excited about taking a family trip. I haven't been on a family vacation in ages and we both never went to Europe with the family. It was an experience that I am very grateful for, traveling with people that have become in every sense of the word, family. Words can't really capture my thoughts and feelings. You guys rock and God willing, we will do it again sometime!

Highlights to remember:

*Jon getting lost for a good bit

*High School Musical in German and English

*Brenda & Erika getting their left ear pierced

*Martin & me laughing hard at a flamboyant man then realizing we got captured on camera

*Sitting in a beer hall where Adolf Hitler once sat with friends discussing ideas on fascism
*Shopping with guys---way different than with girls

*Gingerbread and Starbucks

*The Santa accordion player & his Santa dog

Chasing Daylight

So I just finished the book Chasing Daylight by Erwin Raphael McManus. This is a must read for everyone wanting to live! The book is a quick read but with loads of deep stuff. The book takes the story of Saul and Jonathan going to fight the Philistines in a battle. Saul takes his outpost and decides to camp under a pomegranate tree which means he is not going to be doing any fighting soon. So while they are Jonathan takes his armour barrier and goes over the Philistine side, not really sure what will happen once they arrive (risk & uncertainty). He tells the armour barrier that if the Philistines call them up, they will live but if the Philistines come down to them, they will die. Well Jonathan and his armour bearer get called up and in a matter of moments, they have slayed loads of men in a small acre. While that is happening, lots of other events are taking place. Saul soon realizes what has happened and that his son is gone. Traitors from the Hebrew army that had joined the enemy remember who they are and rejoined the Israelites in battle. In addition, the Israelites hiding out in the hills also joined the Jonathan in the fight. And of course, God showed up in a major way like He does.

All this was made possible by Jonathan who refused to give up a divine moment. His action of taking initiative to engage in battle and seize a divine moment caused a chain reaction. The faithful were unleashed to join in , the paralyzed were mobilized, the prodigals returned and the fearful, broken people were able to conquer fears, join the battle full heartily. All the groups were able to truly enjoy the victory. By one person choosing to make a difference in the kingdom of God by not allowing a divine moment to pass by, their environment was impacted and lives were changed. Jonathans choose to live and seize the power of divine moments.

McManus sums up the book like this. "You know where to begin: take initiative. You know who God is, so embrace life's uncertainty. Remember that the person you are becoming in Jesus Christ is your greatest gift to others, so use your influence. Every great adventure is filled with peril and danger, but the risk is worth it. You have already been authorized to move forward, so advance. Impact your world by fighting the battles that are on God's heart. Move with urgency that creates a movement. Engage in an adventure so compelling that it causes the awakening of the dead in spirit. In this moment, each of us will have to choose. Will you seize the power of every moment or let them slip away?" (p257).

All of us are called to live and to do it without fear. Real living comes with risk and uncertainty. And that is okay. God has given us things we are passionate about and when we are passionate about God, we can trust those passions. When we choose to seize a divine moment, we may or may not see the full outcome like Jonathan. But that is okay. Failing to venture out is traumatic and a life wasted. So the question remains, are we going to seize moments because we are chasing daylight? Jesus challenges us, "As long as it is day, we must do the work of Him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work. While I'm in the world, I am the light of the world." What Christ is saying, is to stop wasting your time and start chasing daylight.

a reminder

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

-Nelson Mandela

*~free~* that is what we are

Free to love.
Free to live love.

Free to do it freely.

Operation Christmas Child

The Beginning.... the big, empty warehouse with electricity

The Middle..... work and play

The End....7511 boxes to be given to kids this year!

Happy Thanksgivng!

Oh I love this holiday! Food and friends! It certainly doesn't get much better than this!! We had about 22 or so people over Friday night to celebrate this American tradition. I love that the number of Irish present overruled the Americans present at this feast. Brenda spent about 3 full days baking and cooking in order to share with the neighbors and friends. 3 days to prepare and 3 minutes to tear into it! We pushed back the furniture in the living room to make way for us all. The laughter coming from both rooms was priceless. After the meal came out the deserts and coffee or tea with loads more conversation. It was such a great evening talking about our lives and enjoying the company that sitting around a table can bring. Gosh it is so good to share life with people!

one question...

.....with no direct answer. How do you know when to hold onto something or when to let go of something? gjosumetpnwi9hsvijd0gorp!! And then I laugh at myself.

under my skin

Have you ever felt like you were drowning inside yourself? So many thoughts, emotions and desires are crashing over my mind and soul. Fears creep up into my mind. Struggles of who I am becoming seem to keep me from seeing straight. The joy of life is swallowing me alive. I am falling feet first into the depths of my spirit. Not sure anymore of what I want or who I want, I keep hearing my own heart beat and trying to muffle the rhythmic sound. It's an internal struggle that needs to be dealt with or I will continue finding the bitterness comforting. I will become my own new prison.
I suppose the hardest thing for me right now is feeling lost. I know who I want to become. I know who I miss. I know (most days) who I am. God there are so many thoughts and insecurities right now. It sucks. However, I have learned before that dealing with the crap of life-outside and inside-are all part of growing up. It's all apart of the journey that we are on. If we try to suppress everything all the time, we will miss out on growth and an adventure. If we try to escape reality, we become delusional. If we fight it, we lose ourselves. If we pretend that we are okay, the play will end tragically.
With that said, I give up. I surrender.

oh yeah...

good jazz....

One of the books that we have been going through as a group is Repenting of Religion by Gregory Boyd. This book is really good and there is so much good stuff packed into a book that to explain it all would take hours. I am finding some of this stuff really challenging to me and my thinking. I am finding it hard to get my head wrapped around all the deep, yet simple truths. It is really incredible. It is so good! So good like warm cornbread and chicken! So without further a-do: here is an excerpt from Chapter 5 Love and Religion (p. 96). The beginning quote is from another person Jacques Ellul and the rest that follows is from Gregory Boyd.

‘The revelation of God in Jesus Christ is against morality. Not only is it honestly impossible to derive a moral system from the Gospels and the Epistles, but further, the main keys in the gospel- the proclamation of grace, the declaration of pardon, and the opening up of life to freedom-are the direct opposite of morality. For they imply that all conduct, including that of the devout, or the most moral, is wholly engulfed in sin….As Genesis shows us, the origin of sin in the world is not knowledge…it is the knowledge of good and evil..
‘In the Gospels Jesus…gives us his own commandment “Follow me,” not a list of things to do or not to do. He shows us fully what it means to be a free person with no morality, but simply obeying the ever-new word of God as it flashes forth…We are as free as the Holy Spirit, who comes and goes as he wills. This is freedom…is the freedom of love. Love, which cannot be regulated, categorized, or analyzed in principles or commands, takes the place of law. The relationship with others is not one of duty but of love.’

‘The New Testament is not about ethical behavior, it’s about a radical new way of living. It is about life lived in surrendered union to God though faith in Jesus Christ. It is about experiencing the transforming power of God’s love flowing into and through a person. It demands a form of holiness that is far more exacting than any ethical or religious system. This kind of holiness can never be achieved through behavior. It has to be received by grace. Jesus’ ministry and the whole New Testament undermine our ethics and religion in order to position us to humbly receive this empowering and life-transforming grace.’

Tribute 2 Uncle Russ--Molly Malone

In Dublin's fair city

Where the girls are so pretty

I first set my eyes on sweet Molly Malone,

As she wheeled her wheel barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive, oh!

Chorus: Alive, Alive Oh! Alive Alive Oh!

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive, oh!

She was a fishmonger

But sure 'twas no wonder

For so where her mother and father before;

And they both wheeled their barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive, oh!

Alive, Alive, Oh! Alive, alive, Oh!

Crying cockles and mussels, alive, alive oh!

She died of a fever

And no one could save her,

And that was the end of sweet Molly Malone,

but her ghost wheels her barrow

Through streets broad and narrow

Crying cockles and mussels alive, alive, oh!

sense...

We all make freakin' sense. Every single person makes sense not matter who they are or where they come from with whatever bags attached. Things happen, good things, when you take time to just stop and listen. Don't judge. Don't fix them. Just love them. They make sense. It all makes sense. When can start letting each other make sense?

Day Trip to Dublin

Yesterday Paschal and I set off for Dublin for a day of exploring the city. Honestly our original reason for going to Dublin was to drink Starbucks. (We are both coffee nutters!) As the day got closer we decided to do something more than just see Starbucks. Even though I have been to Dublin before, I still wanted and needed to see a few things. Paschal played tour guide and we spent the day exploring Trinity College which houses the Book of the Kells, Temple Bar, Grafton Street with Molly Malone, Christ Church and of course Starbucks. (It's the same here as in the states for all you curious people.) I am not sure what I was most excited to see but I can tell you that the Book of the Kells in Trinity College was simply amazing! The Book of Kells are the Four Gospels written in Latin around 800AD. What adds to the incredible manuscripts are the elaborate decoration on the pages with colorful Celtic Artwork. This is extraordinary work for that time period. There is a museum that explains all of the history of this book and others like it as well as what or who each picture represents. I stood there in awe as I read about the monks who translated the Gospels into Latin and decorated each page so artistically. The awe continued as I looked up close at 2 of the Gospels from the Book of Kells. I love when you stand in moment and realize that the past and present have just come together.

Halloween Fun

Halloween is over but here are some pics of our Halloween fun. We carved pumpkins and welcomed trick-or-treaters. We live in the country but we had about 10 kids come through all wearing scary masks and costumes.

Picture 1. Martin's being a face model with Cara's pumpkin.

Picture 2. Erika's time face pumpkin, my traditional Jack-O' Lantern and Michelle's fall carving. Picture 3. A humorously shocking pumpkin! A true work of art!

Picture 4. In the distance is the Cave of the Cats were Halloween is said to have originated from. The cave is not far from Roscommon but seeing as it is on private property, I had to take a pic from afar.

PS Martin says the only reason Halloween is over here in Ireland is because of the Americans!

Up & Down the Road