I'm so sorry...

Really. It's not that I don't have anything to write about, it's just that this time of year becomes mass chaos for our office. We view September as a form of Armageddon for resettlement agencies. If we can make it through the end of the federal fiscal year, the Hallejuahs start bursting forth.

Last year, they told us to expect 51 refugees. We got 79. Forty of those arrived in the last three weeks in September. This year, they told us to expect 90. We have already received 45, are getting four tomorrow night (read: another 11:45 pm flight arrival; why do they do this to these people? They're already exhausted...), and have already verified 68 others to be received by the end of the fiscal year, now three months and one week away. Hmmm.....45 and 4 and 68 does not equal 90. It equals 117. One hundred seventeen people to resettle... one hundred seventeen individuals with different stories, experiences, and cultures... one hundred seventeen souls to help adjust to a new life after seeing immunerable horrors...

Sometimes, I get overwhelmed.

And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’ -Matthew 25:40

Long Time, No See

I apologize for my somewhat-extended absence from the blogging sphere. A few weeks ago, Isaac was sick with some sort of summer cold, which he promptly passed onto me. My cold however, developed into a nasty cough and a general overall feeling of crapiness. I'm on the mend now, which is a relief because being sick is...well, it's boring.

The latest happenings with the Johnsons include our first (and second) service(s) at the building on Blue Ridge! The sanctuary is huge, but because we're only having one service right now, we are packed in there like sardines...all except the first row. How come nobody ever wants to sit on the first row in church? Pastor Burt doesn't spit, I'm pretty sure. Hmmm...maybe Rob does when he's leading us in worship. Yes, I'm sure that's the reason.

I actually wasn't able to be a part of the first service because I was in the nursery with my favorite baby boy Zach. Although the toddler room was literally overflowing, it was just Zach and his Aunt Jenny in the infants' room. Since I wasn't in the sanctuary during the service, Clemma took some pictures for me:

A view of the sanctuary.

Pastor Burt. One of the smartest men I know. Pure genius.

Aunt Jenny and Zach. I had to put his mittens on him because he's now into scratching his face. I love this child. I love his parents, too.

We also threw Liz her first bridal shower Memorial Day weekend. It was a western/cowboy theme, which she seemed to really love. Although the day was wet and cold, we still had a blast together and loaded up Liz with some quality gifts, which she had to move from her house that very weekend. She and Jake are getting married in less than two months now! I am so excited for them to start their lives together as husband and wife and to demonstrate the love Christ has for His Church in their marriage. I bet they're pretty excited too!

Opening presents!

Annie acting like a senior citizen with the multiple Bridal Bingo cards.

Liz and Jenny!

Isaac and I made a purchase last night. It was a fairly large purchase, but one for which we had been saving for quite some time. Forgive us if we're a little behind the times, but you know how it goes...

As you can see, Isaac is very excited about his Wii. We played some last night, and I have to admit that I am actually really good at tennis and bowling. I totally beat Isaac in bowling! Coach Micah would be so proud of me! The cool thing is, Isaac will be gone this weekend to Springfield for their annual conference, so I'll be brushing up on my skills. So friends, feel free to invite yourself over for some Wii action!

"Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flows the springs of life." -Proverbs 4:23

Remembering the Sabbath

So now that the semester is over, I'm not grading students' papers throughout the weekend. I never realized just how much time I spend grading over the weekend until I don't have papers to grade. It's then when I realize how nice it is to actually have a weekend- an end to the week- a time of rest.

I'm the first one to say that I (more often than not) don't remember the Sabbath. The weekend is a time for me to catch up, and I pile the tasks onto Sunday the bulk of the time. I recently read a blurb in the Kraft Food and Family magazine. It mentioned that if you don't feel like you ever have a weekend, try getting all of your tasks you normally do on the weekend finished during the week. It may seem like more of a hassle to add more to your ever-growing list during the week, but the benefits of having a relaxing and restful weekend will outweigh this in due time. "Huh," I thought to myself. "You know, they're right about that." I decided to try out their technique last week. I did the laundry on Thursday and went grocery shopping right after work on Friday. These are both tasks I usually do on Saturday mornings. Isaac helped me pick up and clean on Friday when he got home. Granted, I didn't have papers to grade or classes to prepare for this weekend, but still- I was amazed at how nice my weekend actually was- in essence, that it existed at all.

Then, I really started to use my brain, which can be rather scary at times. At one point I literally thought, "Oh. Yeah, so God did talk about resting on the Sabbath, now didn't He?" This is of course something I have realized before, but why did it take the Food and Family magazine to get this through my brain this time? I'm not too sure, but I know that He works all things together for the good of those who love Him. And so now, the hard part comes in to play: remembering the Sabbath and keeping it holy- every Sabbath. So hold me accountable friends!

This weekend, Isaac and I saw Prince Caspian for free! Thanks to our dear friend Kim and her church for allowing us this privilege! The movie was great, although there were some differences from the book. All is well however, because my favorite mouse Reepicheep was still included in the adventure. Ironically enough, in Sunday school we talked about when we feel God is absent. Look to Prince Capsian for thoughts on this subject. I don't want to write too much about the movie for those of you who haven't seen it yet. And for those of you who haven't read it: read it.

On Sunday, we have our first church service in our new building! God is faithful and our church body is so very excited about meeting together as a congregation in one service instead of three. Oh unity! Pray that the transition would be smooth and that our focus would remain on the Lord. Because we're moving into a new neighborhood, pray for the hearts of those families who will be living close to our new church building. Pray we would be willing to share His glorious name with those individuals and the rest of our community.

In other news of God being faithful, you should check out my friend Glenna's blog. What a wonderful story of His unending love!

Oh yes, and please pray for us at work. The busy season has indeed begun! We just received verifications for eight Burmese individuals. That makes a total of 52 refugees on whom we are waiting to arrive. We're bound to get more verifications in the next few months, so pray for our small staff of four to serve these people well!

"But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness." -Psalm 86:15

I'm Getting Too Old for This...

Really. I am exhausted. Since April 23rd, I have driven through the following states: Missouri, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Arkansas (that's 20 percent of the nation!) and spent a ridiculous 55 hours in the car. I think I'll walk everywhere from now on.

I did allow myself a "mental health day" yesterday, and I must say, it was quite refreshing. I slept, read a few books, did the laundry, and tried to recover from our momentous journey to Florida. Here's the run-down:

We left Columbia Thursday evening and spent the night in Sikeston with Isaac's parents. Friday morning, we drove to Jackson, where we picked up my cousin Beth. She's a freshman at Union, and while we were waiting for her to get out of class, I got to visit some of my favorite Union employees. We first surprised Ms. Juanita, a lady I worked with my freshman year and who took me out to lunch each year on my birthday. Actually, when I moved to Missouri, she sent me money on my birthday to go out to eat. She is one of the sweetest and most genuine people I know. We next surprised Dr. J, who was working in his displaced office. The entire School of Christian Studies had been relocated to another building because of the damage in Jennings caused by the tornado in February. As many of you know, I am borderline obsessed with this man. He was after all, my professor, advisor, employer, pastor, small group leader, and surrogate father during my years at Union. He is one of the most ridiculously silly men I know, but also one of the smartest and awesome as well. He's always ready to bring a little "somthin' somthin'" as he puts it. He also generously gave us a few books off of his shelf, something which has almost become a tradition when I stop by and visit him. Our final visit was to see Ms. Wanda, whose son actually filmed our wedding. I also worked with Ms. Wanda my freshman year, and while in her office, I also got to see the "post office ladies." These two women become vital to Union students, as you find yourself begging them to give you good mail. After hugs all around, we picked up Beth and headed home to the fun that awaited us.

Saturday, my most awesome mother earned her doctorate in education. I have honestly never been more proud of her, which is pretty hard because I'm always proud of her. I don't mean to brag, but I seriously have the best mom ever. Just ask any of my friends. They all love her. I mean, not as much as I do, and they love their own mothers too, but she is without a doubt the coolest. In fact, one of her aliases is "MTM," meaning "Mom the Magnificent." This started out as a joke, but has more or less become her identity over the years. You know about that old adage that you become your parents? Well, I don't mind it one bit when people tell me I'm just like my mother. In fact, it makes me rather happy. She's my hero, lame as it may sound, but true nonetheless. We also can't overlook the fact that I look exactly like her anyway (she being the prettier of the two), so even if I didn't want to claim her, no one would believe me that we're not related.

As proof of my mom's unadulterated awesomeness:

Dr. Mom!

Erik, Mom, Jenny

The whole gang at her graduation.

We also celebrated my grandmother's 80th birthday on Saturday! Her birthday is actually in April, but since the entire family (minus my cousin Michael, who was as usual playing about a gazillon gigs with his band) was in Pensacola, we had the birthday celebration then. It was a relaxed affair, but it is always good when the family is together. I love my family. A lot. And as I've mentioned before, I most definitely have the cutest grandparents in the whole wide world.

"We always thank God, the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the that you have for all the saints." Colossians 1:3-4

Adventures of the Out-of-Towners

Work is out of control right now. While we're grateful that the Department of State and USCCB are not waiting until the end of the fiscal year to send the vast majority of the refugees (like they did last September), it's still daunting to look at the board and see a new arrival notice almost every day. To add to our workload, we've been contacted by several Iraqi and Afghan special immigrants. While I am so excited for these individuals and their families, their unique situations often take a great deal of time, which usually involves driving to their new home. You see, in order for an Iraqi or Afghan special immigrant to come here, they must have an American sponsor. Usually, the sponsors are the military men and women for whom the special immigrant interpreted while deployed overseas. The special immigrant and their family are basically welcomed into the home of the sponsor for however long the sponsor and special immigrant agree. Some live with their sponsors a while, some temporarily. While I greatly admire the service men and women for acting as the special immigrant sponsors, I wonder why they can't live somewhere closer to Columbia? Since our office covers not only the Columbia area but the entire state except for the St. Louis and Kansas City areas, we are the resettlement agency for those who live in the more rural areas. Last week, Senad and I drove to Tecumseh, a tiny town about four hours south, to meet with some wonderful special immigrants. We almost died about five times, including running into a bit of a problem on one of the roads:

"What the heck is this?" Senad asks.

Yes, that's right. The road ends here folks.

It can get difficult providing services to these individuals when they are so far away and in a place with which we are entirely unfamiliar. Pray that I will be diligent to serving these individuals, especially since the government has strict time limitations on how long they can receive services.

In non-work related news, Isaac and went to Louisville last weekend to attend a preview conference at Southern. Though I was physically exhausted the entire time, what with almost dying in Tecumseh the day before and then driving to Louisville at 5:00 in the morning, the weekend was incredibly awesome. We got to eat lunch with Phyllis and her precious boys. I also ran into several people I went to school with at Union and even a guy who married a friend from back home in Pensacola. We met some other potential students and some great professors, some of whom I now think of incredibly highly because of their unswerving devotion to my Florida Gators. Yes, it looks like there is a nice contingent of the Gator Nation living in the Louisville area, and while I am glad to have converted a few lost souls in mid-Missouri, I will be glad to live in a place of acceptance once again. We think Isaac will begin Fall 2009, so pray that the Lord would make the transition smooth for us and that His will would be clear to my thick-headed brain.

One more thing: my beloved friend Clemma and I are taking a cake decorating class together at Hobby Lobby. It's entirely new to me, and my skills are still developing, but we're having fun getting half of the icing all over ourselves and eating the other half. I will post more pictures of this new adventure later, but I wanted to put this one up for Becca, the most un-lame birthday girl I know. Because we couldn't make it to her birthday party, I thought it appropriate that this cake should bear her name. It's a yellow cake with chocolate pudding layers and chocolate icing. I chose the red detailing specifically for Becca. And we all know how much she loves clowns...

Welcome to the "Quarter Century Club" Becca!

"And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." -Philippians 4:7

Old Friends in New Places

Last weekend, Isaac and I ventured to the grand town of Greenville, Illinois to go to the wedding of a childhood friend of mine. Despite the fact that Greenville is literally in the middle of nowhere, we had a delightful time. The only people I knew at the wedding were the bride, a bridesmaid, and the bride's family. Isaac knew even fewer, as he only knew Laina, one of Jenny Mac's bridesmaids who was also a bridesmaid in our wedding.

I hadn't seen the McIntyres since the summer of 2000. You see, Jenny Mac came into our lives sometime in middle school; none of us went to the same school as her, but her family began attending our church. She was immediately one of the gang; we loved her silly attitude and her willingness to admit she still had her CareBear, Funshine (and still does). Soon after, our youth choir went on a tour to Washington, D.C., where a positively ridiculous storyline developed about "The Family," their stalker, and their taco fortune. Sadly, the McIntyres moved to Greenville, South Carolina after our freshman year in high school. I was able to see her for a few hours when I was in Greenville for a week one summer, but that was it.

Lo and behold, Jenny Mac moved to St. Louis last spring! Imagine, that the two of us would end up living so near to one another after so many years apart. Truly, it's a small world after all! More than that, the Lord is good, bringing old friends into new places of our lives. Only He could...

The three of us (Me, JMac, and the Lainster) haven't been together since our freshman year of high school in Florida! And please don't comment on my crazy long hair; I promised Kim I wouldn't cut mine until the day after Liz's wedding.

Isn't this awesome?!?! A Lego cake topper! Amazing.

The scariest part of the wedding was seeing Jenny's younger brother, Joshua. We called him "Joshie" since he was about ten years younger than us. The last time I saw him, he was seven. On the way to the wedding, I was telling Isaac about JMac and the McIntyres. When I mentioned "Joshie," he responded with, "I don't think they call him Joshie anymore." So true...he's fifteen, and I'm old.

Also, Jenny Mac is an amazing singer/songwriter. If you want to make your life complete and are a smart person, visit her website. And if you're an even smarter person, you'll buy her CD Outside the Radio.

My Jane Austen post is coming soon...and possibly some evidence of my new hobby!

Tales from RIS...and NKOTB

It's raining...again. We've experienced some pretty interesting weather over the last few weeks, to say the least. Last Thursday, those of you in the Columbia area may remember the 'unique' hail storm we experienced. I would like to explain to you how everything unfolded at our humble little office. Some words have been changed in order to procure a G rating...

Kelsey: "Wow. It's thundering a lot, but it hasn't started raining. Weird."
Jenny: "That's the way it goes sometimes I guess."

About twenty minutes later, Kelsey, Phil, and I are all in the 'kitchen' which is in reality a small storage place for donations we receive. A local school had held a drive and collected quite a bit of items, so the three of us were organizing everything. There are no windows in the kitchen/storage area; suddenly, we heard this dramatic downpour.

Jenny: "It's raining now."

Enter Senad and Dan, who had been in Senad's office. They run into the kitchen with these wild expressions on their faces. Both looked like they were caveman who had just discovered fire and assumed the typical fight-or-flight response.

Senad: "Explicative! Explicative! Explicative!"
Dan: "We got hail here! We got hail everyone! We got hail!"

To which we all dash to the side door, fling it open, and promptly drop our jaws. The responses from everyone:

Jenny: "Nooooooooooo! My new car! Stop, please please please stop!"
Phil: "Yes, pour baby pour! I need a new car! Come on!!!"
Kelsey: "This is crazy. Oh my gosh, it looks like snow."
Dan: laughter
Senad: "Explicative! Explicative! Explicative!"
Martha: "Can you guys shut the door? It's cold out there."




For those of you behind in the news of pop culture, New Kids on the Block, affectionately called NKOTB by their adoring fans, are making a comeback. This precursor to the modern day boy band (N*Sync and Backstreet Boys ain't got nothin' on them) earned their popularity when I was in 2nd grade. My neighbor and I were obsessed with this classic band- so much so that we actually performed to their song Step by Step for our variety show at school. I'm relieved to say there is no incriminating evidence of this performance (at least to my knowledge). So my husband and I took a trip down memory lane last night and watched some NKOTB videos on YouTube last night. As I told my students this morning, "Watch these videos; they'll change your life...or at least give you a good laugh." So, do yourself a favor: visit YouTube on your lunch break and watch as many NKOTB videos as you can. I promise you, you'll feel better.