Week of Winter

Yes, that's right...the week of winter officially has hit the Dallas metroplex! This past weekend our temperatures dropped to around freezing and there was an ice storm warning all weekend for the Dallas/Fort Worth area. You should hear the weather people and their dramatization of it all...the "Winter Blast" ...it's hilarious! Even our pastor was making fun of it all at church on Sunday. The real ice storm didn't hit us until Monday morning, which delayed us for driving to work (we ended up doing a half-day). Then today Morgan ran into my room to wake me up and tell me that there was "tons" of snow outside. Her school got cancelled and the church campus got closed for the day, which means we are not having youth services tonight. Dori says this is the worst winter weather she has seen in a long time. Normally they might cancel school once a year...and school has already been cancelled 2 or 3 times this year. She asked if I brought the winter weather back with me. Most of the snow from this morning has melted off around here, but a lot of the bridges still have ice and snow on them. Dallas is just not used to temperatures in the 20's and 30's. Crazy Texan weather! But, hey, it beats -15 degrees any day!

Fasting for 21 Days

Our Pastor here at Fellowship challenged us to take a 21-day fast with him. He introduced it during the weekend services last week, while I was in Alaska, so I watched his sermon online when I got home and started then, a few days after everyone else. It started with a 24-hour liquid only fast, which I did Tuesday night to Wednesday night (after eating at Olive Garden when I got back :) Our fast is based around Daniel's fast in Daniel 1:8-16. In Daniel they only ate vegetables and drank water. We are eating vegetables, fruit, whole grains, beans and nuts. We're drinking real, unsweetened fruit juice, soy milk and herbal tea and water. For more info about the details of our fast...check out http://fellowshipchurch.com
So, the first 24 hours was way easier than I thought, as I slept for a good portion of it (as I'm sick) and wasn't too hungry. I broke my fast with carrots and celery, a mixture of cashews, raisins and almonds, and an apple. As you can expect, all of us in the office at church are sharing ideas for food and stories about how our bodies are reacting to it all. It's crazy how our bodies are detoxing from all of the sugar, caffeine and preservatives we normally eat. Today I feel the best I've felt so far. Yesterday I had trouble focusing, but today I feel really good. The best part of all of this is that I am able to really put things into perspective. There are some great devotionals online that help encourage us. The verse that really hit me today was Psalm 34:8 "Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." Our God is good. A big change that's happened in my life since I've been back is the new phase of my internship. Instead of working with Chase and Campus Team East in the Senior High Ministry, I am now working in the Junior High Ministry and will be overseeing the seventh grade students, until they hire someone for that position. I am really excited about this new phase, as it will stretch me even more and give me tools to grow our Junior High Ministry at Birchwood. Never a dull moment at Fellowship Church!

Cabin Fun

I got the chance to spend New Year's Eve with my church family at our "No-Talent Talent Show"...good stuff. I rang in the New Year by clanking lollipops with some of my students over a heated game of Outburst. On New Year's Day I got the honor of attending the wedding for one of my former youth, who got married at a beautiful little wedding in the snow on the shores of Mirror Lake. Then I set out to our family's cabin up at Crooked Lake. I threw my hiking backpack on and cross-country skied across the lake to the cabin (talk about an REI ad). I got a chance to visit with one of my close friends, Matt, and his family. We went snowshoeing and snowmachining in all of the fresh powder. This picture was taken at a little swamp behind our cabin...I sat on a tree so you could see my snowshoes. It was a great time with my family and friends. I was there three days, which flew by. I'm sad to leave all the beautiful snow, but the temperatures dropped so the Texas warmth will be a nice change. The more I am out in the beauty of Alaska's wilderness, the more I know that Alaska is my home and it runs through my blood. Hopefully I'll get one more ski or snowshoe in before I leave on Tuesday.