The end of the year...

Graduation was last night. I smiled at two beautiful eighth grade girls and hugged them and handed them diplomas. I told them how beautiful they were, how wonderful they were and how much I loved having them in class.

Then I went back and served punch again and again, all the while trying to ignore the throbbing in my feet from the two inch gold wedge sandals that I got on clearance two months ago -- very cute, but standing too long is an issue...

Time I got done and collected presents... (a bouquet of red carnations and a ShopKo gift card) I was exhausted. It doesn't feel like the end of the school year somehow... I should be moving out of a camp cabin and going home to see Mom and Dad and then turning around and starting staff training for summer camp.

Instead, I'm hunting for a so-called "Grown up" job for the summer and just amazed at what God has done for me through this year. I'm not the same woman that left Indiana. The woman I see in the mirror is similar, but she's not the same Naomi that left.

Maybe it's the assurance that I see. Maybe it's the way that I will talk to anyone about my church now and about God. Maybe it's the easy way I'll say "Let's pray" or how free I feel to worship.

I don't know what it is. Sister Rice said today "You've blossomed since you came out here."

She's right, I know she is. Sometimes I feel as though the changes have happened all too quickly, but I love it.

And I wouldn't trade Idaho Falls for any church in Indiana.

At the end of the school year...

http://godtube.com/flvplayer.swf" FlashVars="viewkey=60224d3d096f81bfc6bf" wmode="transparent" quality="high" width="330" height="270" name="godtube" align="middle" allowScriptAccess="sameDomain" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" />

I sang this song at my nephew's dedication. It's also applicable to today and to graduation.

I have two eighth graders graduating today into high school. Both are dear gifted girls who have yet to find the extent of their gifts but will at some point very soon.

I'm trying to encourage them to find their gifts as I struggle with mine. It's difficult -- I tell these girls that they should be themselves fearlessly because that's how God made them.

But yet, I still try to hide who I am at times. Not terribly often, as I have a pastor that can tell when the mask goes on, but still. I do it from time to time -- but I'm trying not to do it anymore.

For the graduates:

It's only for a moment you are mine to hold The plans that heaven has for you Will all too soon unfold So many different prayers I'll pray For all that you might do But most of all I'll want to know You're walking in the truth And If I never told you I want you to know As I watch you grow

Chorus: I pray that God would fill your heart with dreams And that faith gives you the courage To dare to do great things I'm here for you whatever this life brings So let my love give you roots And help you find your wings

May passion be the wind That leads you through your days And may conviction keep you strong Guide you on your way May there be many moments That make your life so sweet Oh, but more than memories

Chorus:

It's not living if you don't reach for the sky I'll have tears as you take off But I'll cheer as you fly Chorus

So I wake up this morning...

And a flat tire greets me.

A FLAT.

Dear God in heaven what else can go wrong?

Yeah, it's been a long few weeks.

Thankfully as I am stressing about affording a new tire, a thought comes to me.

I called Dad.

I was right. Daddy takes care of me -- he left a full size spare in my trunk before I left Idaho and it's there now.

Works for me.

Three days of school left.

Thoughts on UltraCon Apostolics and being in leadership...

When suddenly I realize that who I am has a lot to do with the person I was at another church it's time to go completely HUH!?!?!?

I guess it has to do with my being so reluctant to talk to my pastor when I am seriously overwhelmed and need help -- with my family being 1600 miles (more or less) away I end up depending on my pastor and his family sometimes -- and it feels weird to do so. I miss my family desperately no matter how much I know that I am in the will of God.

Thing is is that at the church I went to the entire time I was at Flat Rock, I never felt like I COULD go to talk to my pastor without being judged. Here, I can pop around whenever and stick out my tongue or stomp my foot when I get teased a bit. The Rices consider themselves my family while I'm out in Idaho and that's good.

I'm comfortable with Pastor Rice and Sister Rice as people. That's the thing. They are awesome folks. I get hugs constantly and told how much I am loved and appreciated almost daily. I get bragged about to visiting ministry (I've heard this) and when I conquer some horrible fear (like climbing up a mountain at Craters of the Moon this week when I am HORRIFICALLY afraid of heights) then he tells me how proud he is of me.

Problem is is that when I was in Greensburg I never went to see my pastor. It just wasn't done in the church culture there. Of course, he might have been nicer than I thought, but I was never very comfy with him.

*shrugs*

In spite of it, I'm learning to conquer fears. I'm learning to ask for help when I need it (that happens) and learning to depend on other people and open myself up.

But the more that anyone knows about me, the more I'm unsure of myself and my standing in the world. I'm not the Pentecostal princess by any stretch (My sister comes much much closer) and I'm not following any mold that any Apostolic woman follows... I guess that's why I get scared sometimes that something will go wrong with all of this and I can' t do without this town or church anymore.

But I know this is a trap of Satan to make me feel like this isn't God's will for me and that I'll never be a good leader in the church. I'm working on it. My pastor and his wife depend on me and so do a lot of others...

I'll keep on going til the end.

About Me part 2

So while the last post talked about how I got to Idaho, it said very little about me so here goes...


I am a 29 year old school teacher. I am single but have several furbabies, including a pug/chihuahua mix named Pippin (Peregrin Took when I'm upset with him), an Aussie/Border Collie/Great Pyrnees mix named Keladry (Keladry of Mindelan on one of her bad days), a cat named Kuddley (No I didn't name him :P) and a Chilean Rose Hair Tarantula named Isabella Rose. (The quietest pet in the house and the cheapest to feed, I love tarantulas)

I live in a trailer park in Ammon, ID, a suburb of Idaho Falls proper. It's one of the few non-LDS neighborhoods in town as it's a primarily Hispanic neighborhood. I like living in a hispanic neighboorhood -- the Mexican neighbors are the ones that keep to themselves and don't throw parties or have VERY loud arguments.

Music...

I love Contemporary Christian (Esp Chris Tomlin, Third Day, Michael W. Smith, Steven Curtis Chapman, Natalie Grant, Newsboys and D.C. Talk. OH and Twila Paris), old Jesus movement music (Keith Green, 2nd Chapter of Acts and Larry Norman), Jazz/Big Band (I play clarinet so BENNY GOODMAN! Also Glenn Miller) and a lot of other stuff... Artists I like but not mentioned above include: Billy Joel, Rascal Flatts, Moonwulf (Duke Moonwulf mka Micheal Longcor), Josh Groban, Sarah Brightman, Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenowith. My tastes are wildly eccentric. I also listen to a ton of Broadway and classical, especially Wicked, Godspell, Spamalot, Mama Mia and any Bach and Handel.

Books:

I like Sci-fi/Fantasy -- my brother Aaron got me started on Hitchhiker's Guide, and I also like Tamora Pierce's Tortall series and Mercedes Lackey's 100 Kingdoms series. I also like historic fiction like Eugenia Price and Jean Plaidy. Also any Karen Kingsbury that contains the Baxter Family (because they take place in Bloomington, IN) and authors like Lori Wick and Francine Rivers. Oh yeah, like Harry Potter too.

Also into mysteries -- I love the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evonovich especially.

As far as TV goes, I get it on DVD that's it.

Quick list: CSI, CSI: Miami, Law & Order SVU, Law & Order, Firefly, Stargate SG-1, Battlestar Galactica, Muppet Show, A-Team (I'm embarrassed on that one), Monk and Psych.

Movies:

The Lion in Winter, Serenity, Ever After, Ella Enchanted, Kingdom of Heaven, Star Wars, Batman Begins, Narnia, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Princess Bride, Princess Diaries and too many others to name...

Maybe this is a bit of a glance into my ecclectic life.

How does a Hoosier end up in Idaho?

Since my lady mother has started a blog, I thought it was about time I did too. Especially since my entire family is on one side of the country and I am in Idaho Falls, Idaho.

So how did a Hoosier end up in Idaho anyway? This is a question that ends up getting asked more often than one would think. (also the question "What's a Hoosier?" Which is, in plainspeak, one from Indiana.)

I grew up in the hills and dales of South Central Indiana where I hiked a lot, read a lot and played a lot. In short, the ideal way to spend a childhood is with TONS of imagination and lots of woods around you, though I didn't always appreciate it at the time.

I also grew up with one sister (Valerie), two brothers (Matt and Aaron) and various animals. Growing up in a big family isn't always easy but it does have its joys! I also grew up with a myriad of animals and being very active in our church (New Life Apostolic Tabernacle). I was a clarinetist at 15 and teaching Sunday School and working Children's ministry by the time I was 18.

I joined the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) in 2004 or so and was an active member of the Shire of Cuil Cholium and am a shieldmaiden to Lord Sedric Westbrooke who is squired to Sir Alan Culross. I spin, weave, knit and sew.

It's the latter part that brought me to Idaho.

See, as a church leader I was at leadership meetings. I was also young, single and didn't keep my mouth shut. (yeah, big shock to those that know me) My big push in our church was for a single's group. Our young singles were falling through the cracks and I didn't like it! Besides, I had missed the fellowship from the church I had gone to in college (United Pentecostal Assembly in Bloomington, Indiana). So I pushed.

Brother Seniour's response? Get a leader and I don't have a problem with it. (had a cool pastor then too!) So about a year after Brother and Sister Snyder came to our church we asked them to be our single's leaders and they accepted joyfully. (Having already earned the title of "coolest old people around" from some of the youth. They're in their 60's)

So why is this important?

Because the youth pastorship of Mountainview Christian Center as well as the Jr/Sr high teacher in the Christian School is all their fault.

See, the first thing they came up with? A missions trip for summer to somewhere called Idaho Falls, Idaho. Their son-in-law pastored a church there in Idaho and could use the help. The community was predominately LDS and we could be of service there.

So off we went on a bevy of fundraisers and preperation for the grand time! Problem was is that with a lot of circumstances in my life I was deciding that I didn't want to be in ministry anymore. And frankly, I was a little unsure of going to Idaho Falls where I knew I'd be in the center of it and have to deal with the teenagers.

What happened? I fell in love. Not with a guy, but with a community in desperate need of the truth. I fell in love with the mountains, with the area, with the fact there was no ragweed (secondary to other things, but breathing freely in August was AWESOME).

I wasn't the only one. Aaron David Sanders fell in love too. The difference is that he fell in love with the area and then on close heels he feel in love with the pastor's daughter (they were married last fall). And he was out within six months.

Three years later, I was at a YMCA camp (Flat Rock River YMCA camp) teaching Outdoor Education quite contentedly, having thought that Idaho was not in my future anymore when I got an e-mail that turned my world upside down. It said simply "Idaho needs you".

You see, when I came home and Dad wasn't too thrilled with my moving and when things didn't start to happen, I thought it wasn't God's will, that I had somehow misheard his voice. I gave up on coming back so I was living part time in Southeastern Indiana (St. Paul) and teaching kids about nature, spending my days delightedly getting wet and muddly and playing with snakes and bugs and turtles.

So the idea that a school teacher was needed here was a surprise. When Sister Rice mentioned it, Sister Snyder remembered me. Talk about my world being disordered in five minutes...

Before midsummer of last year, I had the approval of three pastors (Bro. Seniour, Bro. Sangl and Pastor Rice), two professional colleagues (Mark and Marcus) and my parents and siblings. As Mom put it "What are you waiting for, God to hit you over the head?"

So I came. All the way to Idaho Falls to start a phase of my life beyond my wildest dreams. Away from my family, my church and my SCAdian family.

Idaho is far more beautiful than anyone knows. It's set in the Rocky Mountains and is more exquisite than I can describe. I live in a high desert area so our precipitation is mostly snow. (and too much of that!)

It's been rough, but it's been so worth it.