proud sister.

this post is somewhat belated, but i couldn't miss this opportunity to brag on my brothers. in one week, both of my brothers celebrated some pretty major life milestones.

on may 10th, my brother and sister-in-law welcomed their first child into the world: whitley david crowson. little whit is the cutest thing i've ever seen in my life, and being an aunt is way fun. look at this precious little guy:

congrats, luke and teri!

then, just four days later, my other brother graduated from denver seminary with a master's degree in christian formation and soul care. 3 years of hard work finally paid off!

congrats, drewby!

yep. i'm a proud sister.

mom's day.

happy mother's day to the best mom in the world.

she's quite the rock. i'm so thankful for such an incredible example of what it means to be a godly woman, wife, and mom. i'm constantly impressed by her--she's brilliant, passionate, funny, and cool--i mean, let's face it--she has square oakley glasses, wears sanuks, and reads people like donald miller and francis chan. i probably take for granted about 95% of the things she does for me, and i'm sure i don't even know half of it. she's just absolutely amazing, and i'm sad for you if you don't know her.

and last but not least... in about 2 or 3 days, she'll be a grandmother!!!! (thanks, luke and teri!!)

i love you, mom!!

justice juxtaposition.

i read this article on the resurgence written in response to the news about osama bin laden's death. it's about about loving your enemies. ouch.

at the end of the article, it articulated well exactly what i was feeling--a tension. i feel like i'm being pulled between the tension of these two verses:

proverbs 11.10: "when it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices, and when the wicked perish there are shouts of gladness."

proverbs 24.17: "do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles."

i don't really know where to land on this. do i think justice is a good thing? well sure... but i just don't think it can possibly be right to be dancing in the streets over someone's death... no matter who he is.

praying we would know what jesus meant when he said, "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

spinning plates.

have you ever felt like this guy?

you find yourself trying to balance a handful of different things all at the same time... and just as you get one thing under control, something else needs attention, then something else, then the thing you felt like you had under control starts needing attention... and the next thing you know, you're running around like a crazy.

that's exactly what i've felt like for the last couple months. the thing is, most days i think i'm REALLY good at it. i feel like i'm awesome because i'm able to balance so many things and keep so many things under control... oh but then there are those days where i feel like all the plates have crashed and instead of being on top of everything, i find everything on top of me.

last week louie giglio tweeted: "Feel like you can't pull off what you're facing on your own? You're not alone. God agrees with you! #leanonJesus"

now i realize that tweet is super simple and maybe even a little cheesy, but when i read it, it was super convicting. i tend to think i can pull off this whole plate spinning balancing act thing on my own, but i absolutely can't.

so i don't know exactly what it practically looks like, but here's to hoping i can learn to let jesus keep my plates spinning.

yet.

i woke up this morning feeling like someone had beaten me up. i just woke up feeling so emotionally and physically spent from everything going on in my family right now.

some of it is really great...

being engaged, planning a wedding, luke getting a new job, luke and teri's baby coming in 2 months...

some of it is just stressful, not really good or bad...

selling, packing, and moving mom's house, trying to sell luke and teri's house, drew and chris looking for jobs...

and some of it is pretty terrible...

mom having a herniated disc, which led to back surgery and basically being bed-ridden for over a month, and grandmother having a stroke, open-heart surgery, another stroke, and now being in critical icu...

i mean, it's just kind of a lot... and somewhere in there i'm supposed to fit in school and work...

but on my drive back to waco this morning, god reminded me of what i think is one of the most profound passages in scripture--

habakkuk 3.17-19:

though the fig tree should not blossom,

nor fruit be on the vines,

the produce of the olive fail

and the fields yield no food,

the flock be cut off from the fold,

and there be no herd in the stalls,

yet i will rejoice in the lord;

i will take joy in the god of my salvation.

god, the lord, is my strength;

he makes my feet like the deer's;

he makes me tread on high places.

though i feel like i can't keep up with everything going on... yet i will rejoice in the lord.

though it seems like there's too much uncertainty and there are too many unknowns... yet i will rejoice in the lord.

why? how? because god, the lord, is our strength.

i could go on, but surely i've made my point. i hope this challenges and encourages someone else today the way it has me. your turn:

though... (fill in the blank for your own life)...

yet i will rejoice in the lord.