It all seems like a sudden blur...living in Oregon seems like a dream. I knew it would feel that way eventually. It has been a little over two months since I left the beautiful sunny state of Oregon. I miss a lot of things about Oregon. First of all, I miss my family that lives there-my grandparents and cousins. I miss being able to visit them anytime of day or night. Stopping by my grandparents home to get a hug from my favorite grandpa (by the way, nothing comes close to the hugs that he gives and smiles that are shown while he is giving them to me)or calling my cousin to set up a time to get together during the weekend. My cousin was such a help and blessing to me in more ways than I could have ever imagined. She taught me how to enjoy cooking and how to be a blessing to the people she came in contact with. I miss the schools that I taught in and all the children that would run up to me and give me hugs. I miss the teacher at the elementary school who would answer any question that I had about teaching. But, when it comes right down to one thing that I miss doing the most, it would be serving the Lord in the church I attended in Oregon. I get to continue serving the Lord in the church here in ND, but I miss serving the Lord and the people within the church I attended for a short time. It was a blessing to serve through music and through soul winning. I also greatly miss serving in the music ministry with a special family that God allowed me to know for a short time. They truly are "family" to me.
I am so thankful I have some great memories of being in Oregon. None of these memories would've happened had God not been in control of my life and every step I took. When you are in his will, He does do what this great verse in Psalms states: ""Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart."
With time always comes change. As I look back, I am so thankful for the oppotunities to grow spiritually and physically. But, it doesn't have to stop now that I am home. In fact, coming home is only the beginning of great things that lie ahead! Here is a glimpse of what God has already done in my life since returning home:
First of all, as I stated above, I knew that coming home meant change. Alot of change. Some changes, I didn't feel ready to handle. But, God was right there the entire time. Upon arriving home my family was faced with graduation preparations, Christmas programs, Christmas celebrations, New Years celebrations, a dear family pet dying, and a dad having surgary. (All happened within one month!) It also meant that opportunities to serve God would change too. I loved to serve in the music ministry at the church. There were new doors that had opened to me that I saw God's hand in. Coming home meant that some of those opportunities would not be availble. At least, that is what I thought...God had other plans in mind.
It felt so different coming home and seeing everyone again. The inside of the church even looked different! It was a whirlwind of activity as graduation preparation was in immediately in order. At the graduation reception, it was then that I learned that a spot in the nursing home minstry was open. In fact, they were revamping the entire way they did the minstry. They wanted to have a lot more music to share with the elderly people. How exciting it was to hear of ways to share music in the SAME ways I had been able to share it with the church congregation in Oregon. My group is able to sing, play instrumental arrangements, arrange new instrumental pieces, and speak with people on a personal level. It was so exciting to see the hand of God open a new door of ministry immediately when I came back from Oregon. I know it wasn't a mistake. In fact, I truly believe God is going to do great things... this is only the beginning.
Secondly, my position as band teacher at Riverside Christian School was still available. I heard that the school had tried several times to fill the position, but no one was able to fill it. I hesitated about taking on the job as it was already into the school year and I was tired from student teaching. Yet, part of me wanted to teach students so bad! I wanted to serve God with music too! So, I took the position as band teacher.
I was welcomed back immediately and all of the 5th-8th grade students gave me a huge card welcoming me back to the school. It was definitely an exciting time. My head was spinning with ideas of what to do with the students. There wasn't alot of planning time to think and prepare for the program this spring. However, God has been leading and teaching me so much already about being His teacher. I was given two classes to teach- 5th grade beginning band and 6th-8th grade advanced band. I must admit, I was quite disappointed on the first day of each band class. My expectations were dashed. Each class only had about 6 students total! When I thought back to how many students had signed my big card, I wanted to cry! It wasn't what I anticipated... I was to have a big class, a big group of excited, eager students that desired to play music for God! But, "my thoughts are not your thoughts.." and "Little is Much when God is in it..." came to mind. Having a small group can be alot harder to put pieces together. Alot of arranging and rearranging of music has to be done. The instrumentation has to be adjusted in order for it to even sound like music! It was not what I anticipated as I really didn't want to have to spend lots of time rearranging and arranging music! I was tired from student teaching, remember? :) However, I realized really quickly that these students are not my students, they are students God has placed in my hand. What am I going to teach them? How does God want me to teach them? The world doesn't have anything to offer them and the world can easily creep into Christian schools too. God has impressed on my heart to take these students on a "journey with God." I want to show them ways God works in our lives through good, spirit-filled hymns of old. Often, the world thinks of hymns as dull and boring, but God has often spoke to my heart through them. I want God's spirit to be present at our concert this spring. So far, I have seen some resistance to this program. It has been seen it in various ways... But, if God impresses on my heart to obey him and go against popular appeal, then I need to obey. I have learned so much already going through these "ups and downs" in the classroom that I need to be fully surrendered in all areas of my life. When I get disappointed in attitudes that I see, I need to look at these disappointments as God's appointments. He wants to show me his power and his ways. My life is not to glorify me, it is meant to glorify Him!
Being In His Will does not mean everything in life will be easy, it means learning how to deny yourself to invest in people's lives, for the honor and glory of our precious Lord and Saviour. He knows what is best for us now and in the future...
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