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.

let the countdown begin.

big news:

chris and i are ENGAGED!!!!

i realize this is old news to everyone who reads this blog (all 3 of you), but i figured it was only appropriate to create a post about it.

he proposed on february 18th, which was very sneaky because my birthday was on the 17th, so everything was disguised as birthday celebration... we had a yummy dinner at 1424, then got coffee and strolled on campus (one of our favorite things to do together)... we sat and talked on a bench for a while... then the next thing i knew, he pulled out a really pretty ring and asked me to marry him!

i thought our plan was to go back to my house for birthday cake with katelyn and walker, but when we walked in, the house was full of people we love--family, college friends, waco friends--it was such a surprise and such a blast! he did such a great job!

now the planning has begun... and we've officially set a date: 10.01.11.

seven months from today!! we couldn't be more excited! let the countdown begin...

community.

on tuesday morning, dr. roger olson spoke at chapel on the subject of community. i didn't have super high expectations, mostly because "community" is so cliche these days and such a buzz word around truett seminary, so i wasn't thrilled about another sermon on the topic.

good news: i was pleasantly surprised.

he defined community as requiring availability, vulnerability, and accountability. after i got passed the fact that all of his points ended in "ility," i realized that he really did nail it. those things are vital in community, and when they're lacking, their absence is all too obvious.

as i listened, i tried to think about when in my life i've experienced the type of community he was discussing. i thought of the several individual relationships in my life that i could throw into this category...

...but then my mind immediately went to hanoi, vietnam.

wow. what an unbelievable group of people. i'm not even sure i could adequately put into words the type of community the 10 of us had that summer. our time together was rich, and deep, and sweet. i could not be more thankful for these people.

my favorite part of dr. olson's sermon was that he described this type of community as a rare gift, and claimed it to be a brief glimpse of heaven, a snapshot of the kingdom of god. i couldn't agree more.

fiesta.

meet katelyn and walker:

this happened on saturday night:

walker: "everything about you, marry me."

(he was nervous. clearly.)

katelyn: "sure, why not?"

(typical.)

with that, the fiesta began... mariachi band included.

it's still pretty surreal that they're actually engaged, but i couldn't be more excited for these two.

it's always fun to celebrate a best friend getting engaged...

...but i've decided it's the most fun when two best friends get engaged to each other.

congrats to two of the most fun people in my life. let's be friends always. duh.