This Time for Africa

Yesterday I went and hung out with my previous roomie Lindy Green. Man, I LOVE HER! I'm so glad we roomed together last year. I'm gonna miss her this year, no doubt, but I'm glad we grew so close last year. So anyway, as usual she helped catch me up on Pop Culture. I'm always so behind = ) But she showed me a video to a song that sounded familiar but am not sure where I heard it. Regardless, this video really moved me. It's called "Waka Waka" by Shakira and it has clips from the previous World Cup. I LOVE IT. Not only is it full of clips of soccer but it shows the beauty of the sport. It brings countries together. It brings the world together. Oh how I wish that the US was more into soccer. Maybe I should move to another country = ) Ok well I'll let the video speak for itself. This time for Africa = )

Laughter

Tonight I was overwhelmed by how much God has poured His laughter over me this week. I was eating dinner with the lovely Lindsay Rae Robinson at Iron Starr BBQ in OKC when it hit me-- it was the second time this week I had found myself in that restaurant laughing until tears were pouring down my cheeks. I really don't have much to say about that other than, thank you Jesus! Thank you for friends who I can live in joy with! Thank you for meals that fill my mouth with laughter and cause my heart to overflow. You are GOOD!

"He will yet fill your mouth with laughter, and your lips with shouting." Job 8:21

"Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” Psalm 126:2

"And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” Genesis 21:6

May everyone see my life and laugh at how God has so taken care of me! What was foolish to the world He has transformed! May it only point to Him!!

Perfect Sunset

Yesterday Koby let me tag along to Weatherford with her. I had SUCH good time. After dinner we went out to one of her favorite spots between Weatherford and Clinton. It's called White Horse Hill I believe? But I could have gotten that a little wrong. We were going to have dinner there, but there were two rehearsal dinners, so the owner said he couldn't fit us in but we could come back for sweet tea and the sunset. That was good enough for me!! I caught some pictures of it that I just had to share. I hope you enjoy!





[If you want to see any of my other photography, you can go to makenzihargrovephotography.blogspot.com]

Missin' My Family- Yes, Yes!

While working on gathering some photos for Antioch's College Ministry website, I found myself perusing through my pictures from India. I found some videos from team times- times of worship filled with laughter and dancing, joy and fervency. I REALLY miss these people. They are one of a kind. I absolutely love them all. I miss inviting the Lord to come among us every morning and night as we met together. I miss the encouragement. I miss the rawness. I miss the honesty. I miss the laughter. I miss the shared experiences. I wish I could spend everyday with this group. CANNOT WAIT for them all to get back to OKC/Norman in the next few weeks. I miss them!!



"They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. Everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met.
They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved." Acts 2:42-47

Happy Birthday Papa

Yesterday my Papa turned 77. He suffers from dementia so every moment and memory is dear to us as we watch him slip away. Dementia breaks my heart on so many levels, but I don't want to write about it right now. It gets me down. This post is a celebration! So here's to my puzzle partner, poker teachin', piano playin', boat drivin', "Don't Be Cruel" duetin', Christmas story readin' Papa. I love you. Happy birthday!!

Today...

I've been thinking about an aspect of motherhood and how it applies today. I remember during various sermons I've heard (the ones that come to mind were by Dennis Newkirk and Mark Driscoll), pastors have talked about how a husband should help a wife out by helping them to get time alone with God despite the responsibility of children. While saying this, I remember them mentioning to wives that sometimes they may only get 5 min with God, but to take every moment possible and God would bless it. This concept didn't apply much, but I filed it to the back of my mind and it came up today. See, my family is town. God bless them, I truly love them, but I have trouble getting off to be alone when they're here. This is an understandable thing, but I find it hard to find time to just soak Him up alone. That is quickly very taxing on me. It reminds me of my need of Him, no doubt. Anyway, today I found myself briefly alone in the car. I turned off the music and just said, "Ok Abba, this may be the only time I get all day. Fill me up. I want to sit in Your presence." I immediately felt Him come over me, and I knew He understood. This has led me to think that the amount of time needed in His presence is related to how much our heart is seeking Him. If we have the time, the more time with Him, the better!! But on the days when getting alone seems almost impossible, He blesses the little moments. He knows our hearts. He knows that we are seeking Him despite chaos, and He blesses it. This has also given me a fresh perspective of the amount of time I spend with Him each day as a single (who is obviously childless). This is the time when I can spend a much larger portion of time alone and inhaling more and more. Much like in Proverbs when it says, "A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing." (Proverbs 20:4), I believe we can store up much in these periods of life for the times when it is just impossible to spend this much time with Him. Don't get me wrong, I am in no way saying that we can spend so much time with him now that it could last us a lifetime- by no means! I pray that I always press harder into Him! I will always need more and more of Him. I only mean that I hope that I will see this stage of my life as a time when I am not only free to serve Him in a way that only a single can, but also as a time when I can sow, plow, and store for later days when I wake up early only to find a 4 year old staring me straight in the eyes asking for breakfast and a 2 year old crying in their bed, etc etc, until I fall onto my bed exhausted later that night. So there's my thoughts for today. Motherhood and it's application in my life now...

His Perfect Timing...

I've just been thinking a lot about how perfect His timing is lately... I don't have much to say, just wanted to mention it...

"He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also, he has put eternity into man's heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I perceived that there is nothing better for them than to be joyful and to do good as long as they live..."

Ecclesiastes 3:11-12