i am fond of a clean house. there is nothing better than sleeping in clean sheets, looking in a dust free mirror and showering in a clean shower.

however, i NEED a clutter free house. so, while my house is mostly clutter free, it is not always clean. but, i want to get better about that! ideally i would like to spend the two hours it would take each week to clean my house, maybe on a saturday morning.

anyways, i have one question for all of you wise readeres out there :

HOW IN THE WORLD DO I GET RID OF ALL THE HAIR THAT KEEPS FLOATING AROUND MY BATHROOM??

i have hair that follows my rag all around my shower, my sink, my floors, my toilet. and i have NO idea how to get rid of it, so that my bathroom is truly clean. ideas? please???

knowing

there is an interesting discussion going on at hootenannie (a blog that I follow with great frequency because she's amazing!) and I am interested in your guys' thoughts because it is one of this cliches that always pops up. and as someone who was single for 24 years, it came up a lot.

did you know?

ministry

This weekend I came to a realization and I need to rant about it for awhile. Are you ready to hear it?

Ministry is not all about showing everyone around you how hard you work. Ministry is not about doing the dishes, cleaning the dining hall, running activities or cleaning the bathrooms.

Ministry is pouring into people.

That's what ministry is about. That's why I am a missionary.

Of course, washing dishes and cleaning cabins and answering phones are all important parts of making sure ministry can happen. It is no excuse to slack off, but I think we need to adjust our attitudes about that. There is NOTHING wrong with taking some extra time to talk with people and letting the dishes sit there for 1/2 hour. There is NOTHING wrong with letting the floor be a little bit dirty if it means the difference between a person's needs being met or not.

The reason I was thinking about this is because this weekend was the Ladies' Retreat, which means us staff ladies are not put on the schedule for dishes, for the kitchen or to really run activities (except for horses, just because its only ladies on staff that know how to do that job :-) ).

I went into the weekend with a terrible attitude. I am a bit of an agoraphobic and I don't really like being forced into group activities. I wanted to be where I am comfortable - in the kitchen or something else behind the scene. Or at least, able to choose the level that I interacted. I was whining to my boss and just being a pill and he told me to get out there and do ministry!

I did and I'm glad. I was blessed by my interactions this weekend and really did have a good time. But, at the same I was blown away by my perspective change. I was so busy being a Martha and proving my worth to be in the ministry by my works that I was missing my chance to be Mary and sit at Jesus' feet, listening.

There are a couple of reasons for this, one being what my job is. I am the secretary. I answer phones, print things, deal with the bookkeeping, etc, etc. Yes, I know my job is essential to the ministry. Yes, I know what I do frees others up to do ministry. But, at least let me be honest. This is a job that could be done at any corporation. There are times I have a hard time remembering what I do is for eternity's sake, because it feels very much like its for temporal sake.

So, then, because I am in full time ministry and my full time ministry position is working a "regular" job, then doesn't it make sense that work has become my version of ministry?

This weekend, as I sat at Jesus' feet and met Him through His people and His Word, I was reminded of how much of ministry is people. Without people, there is NO point to ministry.

i wanna be like Mary

lately i have been reading a lot of random blogs (ok, ok, not just lately. unless lately counts as the past 2 1/2 years) and it has been interesting to me where God keeps taking me.

links about marriage. links about personal faith journeys. links about struggles. links about illness. links about God's miraculous ways. links about life.

links that bring me to a point of awe of God. links that bring tears to my eyes. links that make my heart swell. links that make me smile. links that make me think.

so, i do what Mary did. i treasure them in my heart. what will God do with them? i have no idea. but, i know He has a plan. and i know that no thing in life is an accident.

oh the weather outside is frightful ...

its that time of year again. winter. the time when the wind gets a bite to it, the world gets a softer edge and the toes go cold.

you know how i could tell?

by looking out my window and watching everyone taking little itty bitty mincing steps.

its wintertime people - you gotta be careful how you walk or you'll end up on your tuckus!

my personal brand of comfort

(this was originally written for a discussion for my Intro to Mass Com class)

Book are like comfort food - they are what I reach for when I'm tired, when I'm sick, when I'm stressed and when I just need a dose of comfort. Whether I reach for my Bible, a political thriller, an archaeological mystery, ChickLit, Christian growth or fantasy, they all satisfy a need I have - a need to escape to another place, even if just for a little bit. A need to let this world's weight slip off my shoulder and disappear for awhile. As an introvert, I need that time with just me and my book to rejuvenate and to get ready to face the world again!

Books have been a part of my life since I was very young. Once I learned how to really read when I was 7, my book consumption took off. No longer was I dependent on my mom or a read-a-long tape to meet my fix - I could take care of it on my own! So, from the time I was in first grade, books consumed me. It was a punishment to take away my book. My mom would ask me to do something and it was always "at the end of this chapter, mom!"

While I can't say that I have quite the same dedication to books as I once did (I am finding as I get older that sleep time is a slightly bigger priority than books - but not by much!) they are still a priority in my life. I always have at least 2 or 3 books going. My Bible is a daily necessity, my fiction book is for right before bed so I can relax and my Christian growth book is to help me think about some issues that I have never thought about before.

When I walk into a bookstore I practically purr with satisfaction as I peruse the shelves, picking up this book, flipping through that book or just touching the spine of a bunch of books as I glance through their titles.

Whatever the occasion and whatever the book, give me something with a couple hundred pages and a binding and you'll have one happy Rachel!

saturday night in Ekalaka

there were 7 of us crammed into the pick-up, all cold and dirty and smelling like fish. it was late, we were tired and we were hungry. so, as we made the 40 mile trek back to jim's to clean and fry the fish we had just spent the last 2 hours catching, we did the only thing we could:

we cranked up the Sirius Satellite Radio and sang along. ages 5-45 belting out "We Will Rock You/We Are The Champions" as loud as we can.

as i was squished between two grown men, belting out Queen lyrics, looking at the dark road ahead of us, i was just overwhelmed with the urge to enjoy this. its the little moments, its the bonding together, its the enjoying life that is worth it. this is life.