Un día a la vez

So what am I going to do when I get back from Africa? That's the question everyone wants to know. Where am I gonna be...what am I gonna do? Well, I don't know :-)

It's tempting to get caught up in not knowing. To feel like I have to know. I kind of feel like I should have a job lined up when I get back, but that's only for two reasons. 1.) It looks bad if you just sit around and do nothing after graduation. 2.) I need some kind of medical insurance.

As I was taking a shower this morning, my Dad's words were echoing in my head "So what are you going to do when you get back from Africa? When are you going to start applying for jobs?" As I conversed with him in my head (don't act like you don't have conversations that don't really exist), Matthew 6:25 came to my head: ". . . do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on". I'm following Jesus as best as I know how, and I really just don't feel any push to be out applying for jobs. I did apply for one, but that's it so far. Lack of time has been a big reason I haven't applied for more, but mostly, I just don't feel like it's what I need to be doing right now.

Anyway, after I was thinking about these things, I went downstairs and checked Chamber's 'My Utmost For His Highest' and found that he was talking about Matthew 6:25. Is it by a lack of faith that I am worried about insurance or my resume being full? I fell pretty convinced God is telling me that He is gonna take care of me just fine as long as I am really seeking Him.

Changing the subject. The last few days have been pretty incredible. I've had so many significant and meaningful conversations with people. Every year in the spring, we (Navs) goes to the football stadium and we talk about how many people we have a vision to impact. Toward the end of the talk, we all split up and go pray somewhere in the stadium. I decided to go up to the very corner, at the very top, since this would be my last time. As I sat at the top, I wondered what kind of impact I've really had on this campus. What kind of impact have I really had in people's lives?

When we gathered back, one of my friends called me over to talk. I had made a simple phone call to this friend while she was on co-op, and it turned out to be at a pretty hard time for her. We talked for about 3o minutes...and God ended up doing some really cool "coincidental" stuff with exactly what we happened to talk about that night on the phone. She ended up telling me that phone call (and the sequence of events that followed) was the thing that got her back on track and wanting to do this whole giving-our-lives-away and impacting people thing.

When it comes down to it, hearing a story like that is the thing that keeps me going. Knowing that some of the small, everyday decisions we make to be good news to our friends and the people around us are having life-changing impacts by the grace of God.

Pretty sweet.

Jehovah

This was in 'My Utmost For His Highest' today:

"You must keep yourself in the proper condition to allow the life of the Son of God to be manifested in you, and you cannot keep yourself fit if you give way to self-pity. Our circumstances are the means God uses to exhibit just how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure His Son is. Discovering a new way of manifesting the Son of God should make our heart beat with renewed excitement. It is one thing to choose adversity, and quite another to enter into adversity through the orchestrating of our circumstances by God’s sovereignty. And if God puts you into adversity, He is adequately sufficient to "supply all your need" ( Philippians 4:19 )."

I liked that. I've been so busy with school and life lately. Pretty much every minute of my days have been scheduled. I've been spending an average of about 5 hours in the lab a day working on projects. Adversity. It's refreshing to think God is in control....that He puts us in challenging situations so that He could be glorified in new ways.

We did smallgroup this week on the names of God. Pretty cool stuff. Some I particularly liked:

YHVH (Yahweh, Jehova, etc) - Self Existent or Eternal One. When Moses asked God at the burning bush what he should say His name was, God responds: "I Am Who I Am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you." ~ Exodus 3:14

Sometimes I try to think about that, but it just blows my mind. We define ourselves (and everything) in terms of something else....always. I am Danny G. I am a student. I am an engineer. I am a person. For God, it is simply 'I AM'. He is all that is. All that is was created by Him. Without Him, nothing would be. Nothing would exist. Try and wrap your mind around that one.

Jehovah-Jireh - The LORD will Provide. Just like Oswald was saying above, He is adequately sufficient to supply all of our needs. I took a test last week that I thought I failed. Well, I did. I got a 56%. But, the professor patted me on the back and said I did very well when he returned my test. 56% happened to be on the upper half of the bell-curve. Jehovah-Jireh.

About a month and a half ago, I set out on a journey to raise $4700 to go to Africa this summer. It seemed like a lot. At the orientation they told us to send out letters and follow up by calling people and what not. That takes a lot of time, though, which I just really didn't have this quarter. So I just sent out about 60 letters and hoped and prayed money would come in. Well, as of last night, I am 101% supported for my trip. And the other miscellaneous costs that aren't budgeted (like flying to DC) should be covered with more money that people say they'd like to donate and other upcoming fund raisers. Jehovah-Jireh.

Jehovah-Tsidkenu - The LORD is our Righteousness. I like this one a lot. It's pretty incredible in it's prophetic context:

"The days are coming," declares the LORD,
"when I will raise up to David a righteous Branch,
a King who will reign wisely
and do what is just and right in the land.

In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.
This is the name by which he will be called:
The LORD Our Righteousness.

~ Jer 23:5-6

The LORD is our Righteousness. Jesus is my righteousness. I couldn't have it any other way. God knew and foretold the story of Jesus in the days of Jeremiah. It was always under His control. Pretty sweet.

Check this:

Rounding Third

I can't explain how busy I've been lately. At any time, I have about 3 (really time-consuming) projects going on, not to mention preparing for Africa, and trying to get a job...on top of the usual Navs and other stuff. I guess it's good. I just really hope I graduate. I think I'm failing one of my 600-level engineering classes. I've skipped (with permission) half the classes to tutor at Frederick Douglas Elementary. We had the first midterm today and I failed it. Some people might challenge the fact that I don't know.....but after 5 years of test taking, I know when I fail. Not a big deal, I'll dig myself out somehow.

I don't know, I'm really ready to be done with school. It's too much to do on top of the rest of life. In case I haven't told you, the plan for now is pretty much to get a job lined up for when I get back from Africa and see where things go from there. It's frustrating, though, because I don't even have time to look for a job. And when I do find time, I usually find myself thinking about how much I don't want to get one!! Woe is me.....

God has been providing for my trip to Africa....I've reached 70% of my goal. It's crazy and encouraging to see how God calls certain people to give. I can't wait to go this summer. And I just have this feeling like this won't be my last trip overseas.

No great epiphanies tonight....just life.

Rounding third and heading home........if I only knew what was waiting for me there.