Web Portraits
David, as the Creative Arts Pastor for CRCC (which includes being the Worship Pastor, Design Team/AV Team guru, CRCC’s website guru, eNews guru, and much more), decided that now was the time to update the staff pics for the website. And I couldn’t agree more. The picture of me that is currently on the website (www.crccsc.org) is over 2 years old and I have definitely changed a lot since then. (See below and note the long, very dark hair).
So yesterday I was super-enthused when David told us he was going to be redoing the pictures. Skip on to today. According to David, I took the best picture…YAHOO! Like every girl, I am a bit vain when it comes to what picture the hundreds/thousands of people can see on the world wide web. 
So check back in about a week or so to the website and check out the staff’s new looks. Until then, here is a more recent pic…that’s my wonderful husband Hal and my sweet Daddy! Definitely different…
Answer to Prayer
I know that I have asked you guys to be praying for a lot of needs for us lately…and thank you. Your prayers on our behalf have been answered! Praise the Lord!
We have been waiting for approval for Hal to be able to do an independent study of Linear Algebra for weeks. Finally an adjunct professor agreed to facilitate this class for Hal. Hal will start that soon and it will go for about 4 weeks. This really is a huge answer to prayer. If this was not approved as an independent study Hal could not get certified to teach and wouldn’t be able to get a teaching job in the fall. Our ability as a family to move forward in buying a house and starting a family really hinged on whether or not Hal got to start teaching in the fall…which of course hinged on whether or not he could take that class. So we truly are celebrating our Lord’s faithfulness today as Hal will now be able finish up with his Master’s program this summer and can begin interviewing for full time teaching positions.
I do also have to take a second to brag on my husband. He recently took his Praxis and PLT tests to complete this part of the teaching certification process. He got an “E” by one of his tests which means that on that test he scored in the top 15% of those who have ever taken that test. WOOHOO! My man is super-smart. And the cool thing is that every time someone requests his scores they will get to see that certificate and that’s an automatic HUGE help in pushing his applications through as well as gives him an edge on the competition.
So, I will ask that you continue to intercede on our behalf in the following ways. Hal has an interview today with a school district in the state. Will you pray that this goes well? Will you also pray that other school districts will be interested in interviewing Hal for teaching positions? And the BIGGIE: please pray that the Lord would give us wisdom and discernment as we begin making decisions about what teaching position to accept and where. That decision will affect so many things so it’s important that we make the best decision possible for our future. Please pray alongside us in this. And of course, any insight you have is always appreciated. Thank you, thank you, thank you dear warriors in prayer for partnering with us in our petitions to the Lord.
A Look Into Me
I’ve definitely hit a blogging gap…and I think a lot of that is because there is so much going on in my life at home, at work, with friends, life decisions, etc. So because of that, I stole this from Courtney and Kim’s blogs.
i am 
verwhelmed by decisions Hal and I must make that will change everything in our lives
i think:all the time and at inopportune times (like bedtime)
i know:I’m on a journey that is simply step-by-step and moment-by-moment
i want: a renewed mind and a refreshed spirit and a deeper yearning for relationship with the Lord
i have: the best family anyone could ask for
i wish: someone else could make the BIG decisions for me
i hate: laundry and pointless conversations
i hear: the wind rustling the trees outside my office window
i feel: a bit weary and yet content all at once
i miss: taking the time to just sit outside and breathe in the day without rushing off to do something
i fear: not being able to have children, not knowing where Hal and I are supposed to be, living a fruitless life
i smell:the flowers Steve and Becky gave me for Administrative Professionals Day
i crave: BBQ (thank God the church is having a churchwide BBQ on Sunday or I just might go crazy)
i search: for the answers
i wonder: who God is forming me to be in the midst of the insanity of my life
i regret: waiting too long before being obedient, not being vulnerable with others
i love: my husband more and more each day
i ache: for those I’ve lost along the way
i care: for people, young and old, rich and poor
i always: tell Hal I love him as often as is possible…he is a words guy.
i am not: patient
i believe: that I have a purpose in my life to love often, be compassionate, and share this joy I have in knowing Christ. I need to start believing in myself.
i dance: like no one is looking.
i sing: in the car and not well.
i cry: all the time…I am the sensitive, empathetic sort.
i don’t always: say the right thing, do the right thing, or trust people,
i fight/wrestle: with myself all the time, my confidence can waver
i write: because it is an outlet for being who I am and saying what needs to be said
i win: when I choose to remember how much I have been blessed
i lose: when I am disobedient or refuse to be thankful for what I have and where I’m at
i never: can spend too much time with Hal and my family
i confuse: my perception of what people think of me, which skews how I see myself
i listen: well, I’m the counselor type
i can usually be found: at CrossRoads working, at home with my hubby, out taking pictures (photgraphy is my newest hobby), reading a book, or watching Gilmore Girls.
i am scared: of being forgotten
i need: more patience
i am happy about: life, love, peace, comfort that the Holy Spirit breathes into me each day.
Reading back I have some interesting responses. Definitely honest that’s for sure. And I definitely have a new perception of my real thoughts. Interesting…. Maybe you should try this, remember to always give your first gut response. Very interesting indeed.
Administrative Professionals Day
This is me on a typical day at CRCC!
Seriously, I do have to laugh a bit at all the random holidays that are out there…including the one for today…Administrative Professionals Day. Not that I mind because as the office administrator for CRCC I was blessed this morning with some gorgeous flowers from the Keyes, chocolates (yummm), and a fantastic lunch at Holly Tree later today.
I must admit that it is really nice to be appreciated at work. It’s the place you spend about 75% of your time each week so to know that you are surrounded by an amazing staff who love you, encourage you, and honor you is such a blessing. I truly couldn’t ask for a better team of people to work with in the purpose of ministry to the city of Greenville, SC. So to all you secretaries, administrators, and office-engineers (haha), I hope you have a great day!
Margin
Learning a lot about creating margin in my life lately. Otherwise known as creating space around my home life, my family life, my personal life. With this has come making lots of decisions about what is priority for me and what is not, what I can defend and what I can’t, what I should participate in and what is not beneficial. A lot of this thought came from the following verse I’ve been camping in for a few days.
1 Corinthians 10:23-24, “Everything is permissible”—but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible”—but not everything is constructive. Nobody should seek his own good, but the good of others.”
This post has to be somewhat vague, however I have found a lot of value in this idea of margin. It’s made me examine my motives for those things I participate in. It’s made me ask some tough questions about my purposes and intentions. It’s teaching me to say “No”, which is extremely tough for me. But it’s been really good for me. It’s a great measuring tool for deciding what takes priority for me.
I’ve come to realize that I’ve been pulled in too many directions, I’ve stretched myself too thin, and my priorities have become out of whack. And I’m now doing something about it. I’m allowing myself the freedom to step back (and sometimes out) of these “opportunities”, “events”, “groups”. So maybe it’s time for you to ask the same question. Do you feel completely exhausted from “doing”? Do you need to put some margin around your life? Do you need the space and time to rest or to reconnect to your family, friends, the Lord? Something to think about….everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial or constructive.
Oh The Insanity
Ok, so what would inspire this 26 year old married woman to choose to spend the night with a group of teenagers knowing that there would be no sleep? The answer….hmmm, going to have to think a little longer on that one. Just kidding, seriously, the company of course. Me, Sarah M, and Leslie J decided to invite the junior and senior girls for a sleepover on Saturday night. We had a small group show up since it was a prom night and several of the girls were on their way home from New York. But it was a sweet time of encouragement, laughing, and catching up.
We played LIFE and Apples to Apples. Spent about 2 hours trying to get the Butler’s TV/DVD player to work before finally giving up. Ate lots of pizza, Swedish Fish, chips, cookies and soda. Talked way too much! Watched the cheesy movie “13 Going On 30″ in the upstairs room since the living room TV was giving us trouble. Attempted sleep around 2:30 am, and not being able to sleep tossed and turned all night. Got up at 7:30 am, took a shower, fixed myself up, ate a breakfast of POPS (which I had forgotten how much I liked), woke the girls and then crashed until church. (Pictures to come soon)
Then my brother in law, Rob, and his son, Tyler, joined us for church this morning. Steve had a great message today on hearing from the Holy Spirit, listening to the Holy Spirit, and then obeying the Holy Spirit. This series has been super and I’m glad we obediently followed through to do it even though we knew it was controversial. After church it was off to the infamous Cracker Barrel to eat with Hal’s parents and Rob and Tyler. All I can say is that a full belly of country cooking makes me so want a nap! But alas, the 11th grade girls small group will be meeting here in less than 30 minutes so a nap is outta the question. Then there will be a time for a quick dinner than on to youth group with the girls.
Whoever said weekends were for resting was obviously insane!
To An End
Yesterday marked the final Good News Club for this year. It’s always bittersweet for me. For the last 3 years I have always chosen to work with the 5th graders…not really sure why. This year has definitely been a struggle in every area: mentally, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I’ve been challenged and stretched, often exasperated and broken. My students this year came from some rough homes: abuse, alcoholic parents, yelling/screaming, etc.
One student this year really gripped my heart from the first day. His name is Damascus, otherwise known as my primary challenger. He sure did give me a hard time for the majority of the year. Just about every single club day I went into the day praying for him and often during club as well. He was just so angry and hurt and because of what he experienced at home he assumed this rough exterior and bad attitude. But yet the Lord showed me that broken little boy and gave me the courage to continue loving him and supporting him and caring for him even when he gave the appearance of not wanting it or even caring that I gave it. I’ve prayed all year that the Lord would show me why he had me so focused on Damascus. I found out why…on the very last club day.
On the last club we do 5th Grade Recognition which is led by me as their Grade Shepherd. Knowing that I was up against some kids who thought themselves to be “too cool” for GNC I sought to find a gift for them that would be a good reminder for them, as well as something they’d actually use. A bookmark or something else cheesy just wouldn’t work. And I got these:
Shield of faith necklaces for each of them.
I had also asked the Lord to give me a word for each kid as well as a Bible verse that correlated. So I wrote these down and presented them to the kids and gave them a short challenge based on what I had written for them. For Damascus the Lord gave me the word “COURAGE”, and the verse was 1 Corinthians 16:13-14, “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love.” After the presentation to the kids, Damascus looked at me and said that he liked his gift. All I could think in that moment was “Thank God, maybe he’ll actually wear it and remember what he’s been listening to all year.” And still continued to pray that the Lord would reveal to me why Damascus was such a burden on my heart. My answer came as we were walking out to the car line…
We were walking side-by-side and I looked at Damascus and said, “I love ya kid, you drove me crazy, but I love ya…don’t forget it when you go to middle school that I will still be praying for you. And more than that don’t forget that God loves you.” He just gave me this look and said, “I have something to tell you.” So I just looked at him and told him to say what he wanted to say. And his response blew me away. He said, “I gave you a hard time because I needed to know that you actually meant what you said when you told me you cared about me and loved me. You proved it and I wanted you to know.” I just looked at him with my jaw dropped practically to the floor, tears welling up…and of course Damascus being his typical self said, “Suck it up Sarah.” Ha-ha. I realized in that moment that all he needed was complete assurance that he was genuinely loved despite his “issues”. I am so thankful that the Lord helped me to pass that test. And that the Lord gently reminded me that I am to be consistent, to love always, be joyful in all circumstances, to stand firm in the face of the storm, to forgive, and to stick it out even when the situation seems impossible. I had gone all year praying for a response about Damascus, praying that the Lord would give me the strength to handle him and love him. And that the Lord in His goodness would give me the desire of my heart…to understand this burden I had for this troubled kid. All praise be to Him!
Take The Good With The Bad
Friday started off like any other day. Until about 12:30 I got a text message from one of the girls from the Jr. Girl’s Small Group, Ashleigh. Her dad had passed out on the job and they were going to the ER, she wanted me to pray. So, of course I prayed with her over the phone asking God to help the doctors to be wise in their treatment of Bill’s health and that Bill would be restored. Little did I know that about an hour later her father would be pronounced dead from a massive heart attack. I immediately left the office to go to Greenville Memorial. Sarah Meszaros (the co-leader from our group) met me there and we went to find the Millers. We were the first ones there. Can I tell you that the Lord gave us both what we needed to get through those first few minutes. We just held them and cried with them and prayed over them. There’s nothing worse than seeing a wife lose her husband and 4 children lose their father too soon. Over the course of the day many others joined us in that hospital and then later at Nana’s house where the family congregated after they left the ER. I had the privilege of seeing a beautiful picture of the church body truly living out their faith. Loving on, supporting, encouraging, praying, bringing food, and just surrounding this family all day. The Lord brought laughter amidst the tears and for that I was grateful. It was a tough day, more so for the Millers, but you know what I mean. It breaks my heart. A memorial service will be held at 3:00 pm today at CRCC. If you can’t be there, please pray for Teresa, Justin, Amanda, Ashleigh, and Brooke in the days and weeks to come. The Lord has been so good to give this family what they need moment by moment.
Early Saturday morning Hal and I left to head to the beach for the day. I had a good time, but it was surely bittersweet as I often thought of this sweet family who I’ve come to know and love over the last 2 years.
Which leads me to today. I got to see the Millers this morning and they are all holding up pretty well considering the circumstances. Many of us on staff are working on different parts of the service. Please pray alongside us that everything will come together so that this family can celebrate the life of their husband and father in peace knowing that everything is taken care of.
Then it will be off to Spartanburg for a birthday dinner with the rest of the Hill clan. I’m looking forward to that. This weekend was a great testament to how we are to live as the body of Christ. Again, please join me in praying for this sweet family today.
Magorium, Bonefish, Beach, Birthday, and Baby (not ours)
Keepin it light post #5.
Last night, after cooking meat loaf and corn (yummm), Hal and I settled in to watch “Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.” Dustin Hoffman was hysterical in this movie, Natalie Portman shined. Again, it was one of those non-thinking movies that is just fun to watch, simple, and entertaining. I definitely recommend it!
Then this morning I got such a great surprise from Steve. In honor of my birthday on Sunday, he gave Hal and I a gift certificate to Bonefish Grill. YUMM!! This is seriously one of my favorite restaurants, we just can’t afford to go there unless my parents are buying. So to get this gift was so nice…especially since Hal and I rarely get to go out to nice places. Thank you, Steve and Becky!!!!
My father-in-law also stopped by the office today to say hello and brought me a gift from the Weber clan. I love Audrey Hepburn and I am now the proud owner of “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”, “Sabrina”, “Roman Holiday”, “Funny Face”, and “Paris When It Sizzles”. I am so excited to have an Audrey movie marathon!!! And thanks for the card and what’s inside. I really appreciate your thoughtfulness!!
Tomorrow Hal and I will be heading to Folly Beach/Charleston for the day with friends. We’ll hit the beach and downtown Charleston. All prior to tourist season and after Spring Break for most schools…so it should be just perfect timing. Weather is supposed to be 78 degrees (yay) with scattered T-storms. If any of you are from that area you know that those storms don’t last long so we are in for a great day! I’m so excited…it’s one of my favorite places. We plan to go to Gilligans which has the best hushpuppies of anywhere! I’m definitely looking forward to this trip…even if it’s only for the day.
Then on Sunday we’ll go to church and jut chill for most of my BIG DAY! Which, I should probably add that I share my birthday with my twin brother Steven. And for those of you that will ask…we look nothing alike. He and my little brother look more like twins than we do. Hal and I will then get together with Steven and his wife Kimberly, my parents, and maybe my little brother Chris for a birthday dinner out. Here is me and Hal & Steven and Kimberly at their wedding last summer.
And lastly, in other exciting news….our best friends Will and Diana Thompson just welcomed their new son, Wyatt, into the world yesterday around 2:45 pm. He came in weighing over 8 lbs and is said to be a long baby with big hands and feet. I think he’s going to be a tall one like his daddy! Congrats Thompsons! Can’t wait to meet him. Here’s a pic of us when Diana was just starting to show.
That’s it for this week folks! Thanks for checking in and I’ll “talk” with you again next week.
Linear Algebra
Keeping it light, post #4.Ok, so this post won’t be as light as the other two.
As most of you know my amazing hubby has been working so hard these last two years in graduate school. He’s been working on his MAT (Master in the Art of Teaching) with a concentration in Math. Yes, you read it right, math. Yuck. But my husband loves it, so more power to him! He’s almost done with student teaching and has two classes left, Prob & Stat and Linear Algebra.
We’ve been so excited these last few months as we’re starting to realize that a goal is being reached. Our plan has been for Hal to get a teaching job (High School Math) beginning in the fall, we’d start looking for a house (because we are both so sick of apartment living), and starting a family. However, we hit a pretty nasty snag in the last week or two. Linear Algebra is not being offered by Converse and they won’t let him independent study it. Which means that our only option is to see if we can find the class being offered during a summer session somewhere else. IT’S IMPOSSIBLE! We have scoured almost all the schools in the state and no one is offering it for when we need it. The only online college we’ve found that is offering it may not qualify under Converse’s standards for the class. So, unless we find this class ASAP, all our plans will be put on hold. Needless to say I am not real thrilled about that and neither is Hal.
Will you pray with us that Hal will somehow be able to take this class somewhere within this summer window that we have so that Hal can start his career with something he loves, so that we can find a home and set down roots, and that we could work on starting our family? We desperately are ready for this stage of our lives, and this setback has been so discouraging to us. We are clinging to the Lord and are trying to trust Him right now with this part of our lives. We know and recognize that He has a purpose and a plan. We’d appreciate your prayers. Thanks!
