ready, set, comment...

Dearest blog-lurking older sister,

Hi. How are you doing? We are having beautiful weather down here in So. Cal. Anything is better than the 100+F weather we were getting deep in the heart of Texas last week.

Ok, I know you read my blog. You really should leave some comments now and again. I would love to hear your thoughts... since you are not currently blogging yourself, you should atleast contribute with some comments. Come on now, let's hear it. Of course, you may check the other blogs I keep... comments left there are apprecitated all the same. Need I spell it out for you now or do you get the point?

Well, I love you and can't wait to spend some time with you and your handsome sons in July. Get the fireworks ready. I will be driving up all night Saturday the second and Sunday the third. Tell the monkey-boys that their auntie loves and misses them.

Love,
your comment-deprived lil' sis.

standing in the clearing

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone...

All this time I couldn't see so clearly... I was taking steps into the fog. I longed to see... to know what lies ahead... to decipher what it was I was experiencing, but there just wasn't any way to know on my own. It was fellowship that brought me up out of the fog unto a clearing even if for a moment. While I was there in fellowship I began to see things for how they are, but I have found that once I step back into a situation the fog can come back and confuse things. You see, fellowship is a very important thing, and staying in fellowship is even more an important thing.

going, going,...

gone.

I've been on the go for weeks... maybe months now. It's been an amazing semester. I think I am the happiest that I have been in a long, long time.

Today I leave Austin for the rest of the summer. I will be in the Northwest mostlly visiting family and helping the church out there. Last night I prayed with a set of my 'parents' out here... it is nice to really know that someone is praying for me regularily and is seeking the Lord's interest for me and not merely their own. They opened their heart up to me in just the brief ammount of time we had together and I treasure their fellowship and prayer.

I don't know what this summer holds. All I know is I don't want to miss Him. He is the reason I am still here today. Lord, I love You. I still love You.

O what peace the Savior gives,
Peace I never knew before,
And my way has brighter grown,
Since I've learned to trust Him more.

fellowship

1. With God ---

   consisting in the knowledge of His will (Job 22:21; John 17:3); agreement with His designs (Amos 3:2); mutual affection (Rom. 8: 38, 39); enjoyment of His presence (Ps. 4:6); conformity to His image (1 John 2:6; 1:6); and participation of His felicity (1 John 1:3, 4; Eph. 3:14-21).

2. Of saints ---

   with one another, in duties (Rom. 12:5; 1 Cor. 12:1; 1 Thess. 5:17, 18); in ordinances (Heb. 10:25; Acts 2:46); in grace, love, joy, etc. (Mal. 3:16; 2Cor. 8:4); mutual interest, spiritual and temporal (Rom. 12:4, 13; Heb. 13:16); in sufferings (Rom. 15:1, 2; Gal. 6:1, 2; Rom. 12:15; and in glory (Rev. 7:9).

Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary

amen

Less I would argue Lord and go my way.

More I would say "Amen" to what You say.

Grant me a walk to You conformed.

May my living be transformed.

I would love You Jesus more.

born to try...

All our lives we are encouraged to give things a "try"... to not shy away from new challenges... to step up to the plate and swing with all our might hoping for a home run... but more often than not, my trying results in a pile of mistakes. Some I have learned from and others I only think I have learned from only to discover I still cannot overcome them.

It's true what people say about a boat with a rudder never gets anywhere without a paddle or a motor sending it on it's way. But this time I have paddled so far that I may have lost my way. I could sit around and ask myself why I keep doing this, and whether or not I will ever learn, but the fact of the matter is... I'm human. As such, I am prone to make mistakes. Simply put, yes, even I make mistakes. I have found that though I am a woman and at times I can be super, I will never be Superwoman. But one thing is for sure, one cannot sit in their boat with the paddles/motor never touching the water all their lives because they are afraid of where it might take them. So whatever the future holds, mistakes or no, life is meant to be lived... meant to be tried. Don't let your past get in the way of the future.

indian name: sisterlonglocks

Actually my hair is about this long or longer now...
it's about time for a trim. Just thought I would post
you something relatively close to how it looks
before I go and lop it off. What do you think?

em and ben

em and ben
Originally uploaded by mle jane.

Adorable, isn't he?!
He's my lil' Austin buddy.
A lil' halfie... his mum is Belizian and his dad is African-American.

anna-maria

anna-maria
Originally uploaded by mle jane.

Last semester it was rare to see one without the other, hence, it is hard not to just blend their names together and sing it to ava-maria.

Jesus In the Sky with Clouds

To be read with an incredibly fake NZ accent... Anna's good at it. Although she wasn't born to unload she does have some hidden talents...

My Awesome Testimony

My name is Hilary.... *(last name omitted to protect the dear one whom's testimony this is... ) I live in Christchurch, New Zealand; I would love to share with you my testimony after I boldy came to God and I feel that you will be able to understand what I'm about to tell you; that when I made myself available to God and that soon later my calling and expereince took place.

It's time to tell you what I experienced last year.

I promise to God that I would tell the world *(typist note: and what better way than on the blogosphere) on what was shown to me and to give hope to the Gentiles of this generation that Jesus really had resurrected and he is asking everyone, "Are you ready?"

22nd June Tuesday 2004 afternoon

I looked outside then looked up through the garage glass door *(now how does that happen?! scratch that, there is more unbelievable content further on, and in the words of the author... 'keep reading'). It was a very cloudy day in the afternoon I saw Jesus riding on a long white cloud, over the whole of Christchurch and then He ascended to Heaven. I saw him in the tomb, half sitting up with his long legs straight *(*blink* *gasp* Jesus had long legs?!) and his face was looking at me and moving, like he was talking to me then he ascended slowly to heaven, head first then last of all his feet. He was like a huge charcoal pencil drawing; The outline of the tomb and Jesus was in dark clouds and was coloured in with white clouds, then as Jesus ascended head first , the clouds turned into a grayish cloud.

I'll explain a bit better for you.

Imagine in slow motion His head ascending, but as it disappears, all that is left is gray cloud; like the black and white blended together and this continued until His feet followed. It was amazing! All I would say was, "Who are you?" and watched and waited till he was completely gone. Because of this I feel like I'm one of the many witnesses to his resurrection.

Acts 2 Verse 17 says, "This is what I will do in the last days, God says: I will pour my Spirit on everyone."

Keep reading.

Acts 2 verse 19 says, "I will perform miracles in the sky above and wonders on the earth below." I was prompted to write to tell you and to perhaps find ways of getting this amazing message of hope to others that have no hope and are broken haerted. Please feel free to email me anytime at all and thank you, I have other testimonies too through having an awesome relationship with God through His only Son Jesus. I also would like your prayers for me to do Gods will as a witness for this generation. This was not a vision but seem with my own physical eyes, God is my witness to this God bless from Hilary.

Is there a place somewhere where I can share this message of hope to others?

Why yes, Hilary, there is...

Just keep reading.

cds, cbs, ebs, and many many man hours...

I can't believe that I am still here,... sometime in the last 24 hours, 2400 CDs printed and burned, placed in jewel cases, colated and rubberbanded (straight without any twists) as ordered by c.b. the CD Nazi... you'd think that we'd be through... but no. Not on your life. So drop dead while I finish up here,... sometime in my lifetime. Oh, and check out Anna's rendition of... how to grill cockroaches in a way that even Martha Stewart would be proud to serve to company. Notice I didn't say friends, don't know if the woman (M.S. or is it Ms. M.S. at any rate...) has any.... or atleast that is what the CD Nazi says... so C.B.!!! Give me back my computer... uh, I mean, your computer... let me blog in peace, will ya! Geeze! Anyways, as I was saying before my phone rang and he usurped my little piece of cyberspace... You should check out Anna's rendition of our nights of being drunk on fatigue at the Congress hall... Shhh... don't tell. ok, put your grubby fingers back to work... pick up a cd, place it in the drawer, press the button, wait 15 seconds while listening to a mesmeric sound of the machine doing it's job while I do mine... over and over and over and over again... so anyways, next time I will share with you a lovely amazing testimony of... get this... now keep reading... (in a New Zealander's accent) "Jesus in the Sky with Clouds"... but rememeber there's always more where that came from. Now back to you, Bob.

meet mr. & mrs. smith

Went to go see Mr. & Mrs. Smith the other night. I liked it... expected a lot more action though, don't know why... I also didn't expect them to make up so quickly. *wink*

comments: drop dead

I was thinking about this the other day,... Hmmm... Perhaps it' s because I don't actually write to be read. Or maybe it's because I no longer stay up-to-date and I have lost reader interest... no matter. I suppose things could be worse... My mother could discover my blog, and leave incrimiating comments...I-yah! Things could definitely be worse.

attack squirrels

They may be Jenn Lee's best friends...but I think they are all posessed... and after yesterday's occurance I am beginning to think that they are demon posessed for sure.

skirts, flyers, and lemonade stands...

I ran into an old friend yesterday. She was on the campus working a girls basketball camp... and she saw people standing on street corners in skirts... and thought to herself, "hmm... I wonder if Em is around some place..." and sure enough, she spotted me, and then positioned herself in my vacinity so when I turned around, there she was in clear view. Awh, it was a sweet reunion. She thinks we are a "little extreme"... and sometimes I have to agree with her,... but not today, Freshmen orientation... young people starting college need the opportunity to meet people who aren't going to brainwash them away from their beliefs or persecute them for what they believe... She was a sovereign recepient of a refreshing cup of lemonade just 5 years ago... I think she barely remembers... other drinks can start to do that to you... cause you to loose your memory... but I remember... I remember the OLJ written in a Sharpe pen across the toe of her practice shoes... I remember a song sung to me over the phone late at night, with words written by a young poet beginning to express a longing deep within her. I remember...

still in a funk

Can't seem to shake this crazy moodiness. Am I just reaping something I have sown so long ago that I don't even remember anymore? Someone told me it just comes with the territory of being a female. I wanted to pull their hair out, scratch out their eyes, and then strangle them. (not really, but maybe subconsciously I wanted to... why else would it have come out in this sting of thought?).

sleepless in austin

I was in a funky mood yesterday. Pretty much nothing seemed to be going that great. Not being able to shake it even with an afternoon nap, I nearly just stayed in my funk, but somehow I managed to make it to my GP's house for a late dinner after missing the table mtg... luckily you called and I was able to apologize for my moodiness... When you phoned back I was sitting around the table with a couple girls enjoying our wonderful Jesus by speaking of His wonderful worth. later that evening, actually into the early morning hours... you shepherded me. oh I was ushered back to my spirit. How sweet that was. Thank you. Thank you so much.

but for to me to live is...

Casey's New Orleans Snowballs.

Mmm Mmm Good!
And it keeps on going strong!

Afterall, we are what we eat, right?

beautiful dreamer

Last night I had a dream... Dressed in white I entered a beautiful garden and found my family waiting there for me. I was late, I think, but no one seemed to mind. It was a small private affair... everything around me was beautiful... just beautiful. Silly dreamer. I wonder what brought that upon me.

how to charm me - vol. 2

Stay up more than half the night keeping me company on the phone when I cannot sleep... chat and laugh with me... making me smile, and then play songs to me over the phone line to help put me in a relaxed mood... eventually causing me to drift into a slumber where the last thing I hear is you telling me you love me and then *kissing* me g'nite.

how to charm me - vol. 1

let's just say

...it's been a while since I have posted anything, and I'm long overdue.

Let's just say that Memorial Day was a little more than it was cracked up to be...

Let's just say that I was happy to be indoors at such a fine establishment(Hilton America, Houston TX) in the most humid place in the continental United States. The large windows served as awesome widescreen for the storm that was displayed across the city-filled sky. Haven't seen lighting like that in years... and the rain, well, it was Texas-sized... 'nough said.

Let's just say that a few more couples came out of the church life woodwork. Sure, it was bound to happen sooner or later with people finished with college, done with some training, and ready to press on in their lives... it just hits them... and *POOF!* they're goners.

Let's just say that I had to say g'bye to one of my dearest companions from this semester. She was returning to South Africa after the weekend was up. It's tough when you don't know when or how you will ever see someone again. Lucky for us we'll always have the NJ to look forward to, but yah, it's still tough saying G'bye. Everytime I was with her that weekend I wanted to cry, but I blinked back the teardrops so that our parting days would not be filled with sad memories.

Let's just say that the heavens were further rent and my eyes were openned more to see the vision that has been unveiled to the Lord's recovery over the years. The Bible, it's such an amazing book! Our God, He's an amazing One and what He has and is carrying out today in this age is... WOW,... need I say more? I can't but just say, "Amen, Thank You Lord."

Let's just say that I am also very thankful for having a car to cart myself around these days. My drive home from Houston was great. It was just me, flower (my car) and the open road... literally. I thought the highway would be packed since it was Memorial Day's evening, but I guess no one save me had the bright idea to spent the weekend in Humid-city. If not for the conference I probably wouldn't have gone, but still, the drive was nice... and the storm made for some great big white puffy clouds against the clear clean blue sky. WooHoo... speed racer... *wink* I made it in no time at all. *wink*