Weekend

This past weekend was quite eventful. Friday, we went over to Nate and Meg's house for dinner and met one of Nate's friends and his girlfriend. The conversations were funny, the food was delicious (BBQ and veggies), and the night ended fairly late - which is always a good thing. I think I may have mentioned before about Nate and Meg moving far away for a job he was going to take, but they ended up not going. I'm sad but happy because I really cherish our friendship with them. Like us, they are also a newly married couple with a heart for God and I get along with both of them so well! It's always nice to be able to have running inside jokes and to have the openness to share prayer requests with one another.

Saturday, Danish's parents moved into their new house off Midway so they needed our help in moving some things from the old house to the new house. We first met with them at Little Gus Cafe for brunch. I had the Eggs Benedict and Danish had his usual French toast. The house is HUGE...and beautiful. I'm so happy for them as they have been waiting to close for so long but their old house had been on the market for about 4 months. After two car trips of bringing things over, we called it a day and Mom opened up a bottle of Port and we chatted about the 'grandchildren' coming over and spending the night.

That evening, we went over to Jake and Nicole's place for game night. We had BBQ and veggies again - so good. Danish and I made a beer run and also grabbed a bottle of spiced rum for Jake. I also gave away my half bottle of Parrot Bay coconut rum which I hate, and it felt good to get rid of it. Brian, Danish's brother, also came. Kevin and Christen, another couple from church, were there and also one of Nicole's friends, Tatiyana. Tatiyana is Russian and I was pleased to find out she lived in South Korea for a few years and we had conversation about growing up as an International kid. Later, Judy came over distressed from having a fight with her boyfriend. I could tell she just wanted to get her mind off of the situation but couldn't bring herself to enjoy the company or get into the games (we were playing Charades by the time she came). It saddens and angers me when my friends are struggling in their relationships - especially when I see them being treated so unfairly. And to top it off, this guy claims to be a Christian but clearly acts like a hypocrite. I think it definitely puts a blunder on her relationship with God and that sucks.

Sunday, we had a great Bible study lesson led by Kyle as Brad was out of pocket, having gone to his son's wedding the night before. From the sounds of it, the wedding was a success which is a true blessing since the bride was seriously ill and had been released from the hospital only a few days before the wedding. The Bible study was great because Kyle, who was just wrapping up with the Crown Financial Ministries studies, was generous enough to share with our group some of the things he had learned. The topic we chose as a group was 'work' and what the Bible says about it. Apparently God intended for man to work, and work was not a punishment for sin! Work was intended to be purposeful and satisfying, but sin caused man to toil and labor arduously for food. I found it interesting that God grants skills, abilities, and expertise as opposed to us acquiring it through many years of experience, and He also determines who will prosper and who will not so we cannot boast of our successes. The final lesson that came in on a tangent was the matter of efficiency; God expects us to work hard, but if there is an easier way to get things done, we ought to learn of those ways so we are free to use our time in other ways to bring glory to God. Kyle used the example of a nail gun vs. a hammer. The lesson was refreshing as I am in the midst of looking for a job...while dreading the prospect of working. I've never had a real job before and my work ethic is pathetic. However, I was reminded through the lesson that we are to work for the Lord, not for men. That surprisingly takes away the burden and apprehension of work...but it won't stop me from fervently praying that God does bless me with a job in which I do feel joy and satisfaction, not torture and despair. Work...oh, work...