Okay...so here's the update.

1. I live in Portland, OR

2. I'm desperately looking for a good job to throw myself into. I work part-time at Starbucks, but that's not really paying the bills by any means :) Hopefully that will happen soon.

3. Within the next month I should begin volunteering with Outside In. It's a homeless youth drop-in center that I've been interested in for awhile now. I'm excited for that to begin.

4. We have found a church home which I believe will be very fulfilling. Time to give back...no more sit and receive. It is good.

5. We have begun to make a few friends which has been really nice. I definitely miss my friends from Reno, but am excited for the start of new relationships.

6. As many know, it has been about a year since I re-entered the single life. That has definitely been the most difficult road to travel thus far, but has shown me a lot and brought me to a new place. I am thankful for it.

7. I am happy here in Oregon. It is a wonderful place to live.

8. If you are ever in the area, PLEASE let me know. Trace and I have been blessed with a wonderful home that is big enough to share with others. We would love to see you!! 

For a more introspective look at my life

This is a journal entry from 3.7.08:

I come not to impress but to be humbled. I come not understanding but being willing to listen. I come with a hardened heart toward my brothers and sisters but with an openness to try. I come to spend time with You…Lord, as much as I don’t want to, I am open to listen to what You want to say.

So familiar,

Yet so strange.

Easy to fall back into the role;

Yet not desire to be that person again.

Where does that leave me

among all these strangers?

To a new knowledge, a newness of what was known.

Lord, give me eyes to see and ears to hear.

Call me up.

::I feel He has begun to do that. I am thankful. He has softened me in many ways...just a reminder that His presence is what brings peace in our lives. The funny thing is is that I didn't realize how restless my heart was. You get so used to the restlessness that it feels normal. And I was relatively happy, just not completely at peace. And I would by no means say that I am completely at peace all the time or that all things are great and perfect (there is still plenty of room for frequent breakdowns), but the sense of peace is deeper than it has been in a long while. Again, I am just thankful. Thankful that through my need to experience life in a different way, He remained close. Thankful that He always loves me. Thankful for my family, for my dear friends, for the life I get to lead.

I am very hopeful for the change in the seasons....I want to meet new people, experience new things...I want to say yes more often. We will see where this leads...the road ahead is ambiguous, but not worth shying away from.

If it has been awhile since I've talked to you...I hope you are well. I can assure you, though I might not be the best of letting you know it, you're in my heart and thoughts...so many lessons from each person I've known in life. I appreciate you.

this was what my pastor posted on his blog a few days ago....

i'd love to know other people's thoughts and reactions.

OK. Just so we're clear....Jesus did not come to establish earthly politics. He taught that His kingdom was of another world (John 18:36).

Jesus is not a Republican. Jesus is not a Democrat. Jesus is not an American.

God has blessed America but this does not mean that God prefers America.

In the Scriptures there are 2 Kingdoms. The Kingdom of Man and The Kingdom of God. Believers in Jesus are Citizens of both kingdoms. Jesus Said in another place "render to Caesar the things that are Caesars and to God the things that are God's" (Luke 20:25). This means that we have responsibilities as citizens of both kingdoms but these two kingdoms are separate kingdoms.

I get a little nervous when Christians start putting God and politics together (Like the painting of Jesus laying hands on George W. Bush and Abraham Lincoln) as if Jesus is with us more than Africans or Iraqi people.

The mission of the church is not to “turn this nation back to Christian values” or “get prayer back in schools” but to make disciples of all nations.

What if the millions of dollars spent on “fighting for 10 Commandments monuments” were instead spent on reaching unreached people groups with the gospel? What if all of the $ spent on American Christian political battles were spent on feeding the worlds poorest people?

America is one of the nations in the "kingdom of man" and we should be the best of citizens in this country. We should vote with Christocentric world view and obey the laws of this government as long as those laws do not conflict w/ the gospel. But this does not mean that we should make it our agenda as Christians to get Christians in office. Martin Luther once said "I would rather nominate a Jew that understands justice than a Christian who does not." The emphasis of the New Tesament is that the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of Man directly intersect when the apostles tell us to obey and pray for the authorities (1 Pet. 2:13-17). Obey and pray.

Jesus is a king of a different kingdom than the USA.

my...how i love him.