February Condensed

I've been meaning to, and I actually really needed to blog so I could get things off my chest, but as is always the excuse... I've been way too busy. Where to begin though?

I guess I can start with how much I have been loving what God has been doing in our church this semester. Straight up, all the prayers that have been sowed throughout the year have shown fruit thus far. One of our prayers was for our members to gain a greater ownership for our lifegroup (and church), and it has been amazing to see the students really mobilizing and doing things together for a purpose. A couple weeks ago, the students randomly surprised the leaders w/ an amazing care package and poster. Apparently they had spent the past couple weeks of their own accord to plan and put all these things together. Last semester, something like this would NEVER have happened without a leader "suggesting" they do something.

Even the Bible studies have really been empowered with God's presence. Something I realized (and confirmed with conversations) was that I had been trying so hard to make the LG look like all the other groups I'd been in, that I completely froze God out of the picture. This semester, we as leaders have committed to really teaching the basic fundamentals of how our faith is lived out, and the students are really responding. Please continue praying for us, we want to continue the momentum, and even pray for a multiplication of members that will really commit to the church.

Pretty much I can kinda see how parents might feel when their kids are growing and doing well; there's this sense of pride and joy that just emanates from your heart that you can't really explain. God is so faithful, and yet he is so jealous for our dependence on Him that He doesn't mind withholding things to get our full attention.

Work is sick; sick like the bubonic plague, not the good sick. Districts all around TX are going through hiring freezes and budget cuts, including my own. Teacher morale is so low it's ridiculous. Everyone is on edge, especially when administrators pop in to do surprise walkthroughs. Any little issue makes teachers paranoid that this is gonna get put onto their record and be considered for possible termination. I'm not gonna lie, I've been stressed and pretty scared considering where some of my students are in their TAKS (TX state standardized test) preparation.

Celebrating Aaron's Bday

All in all, God is definitely doing something amazing in Austin, and I am so proud to be a part of what He's doing.