Hey y'all!
Well, the spring semester is over: Yay!
It was a great semester, but I was definitely ready to be done with exams and everything. I had a lot of exams this semester as opposed to a lot of papers.
On Monday, my clinical pastoral education starts. It's going to be seriously intense. Much of the time when I'm working at the hospital, I'm going to be the only chaplaincy staff person on-site and when that's not the case, I'll still be carrying the beeper and the calls for pastoral care are going to come through me! Phew! (Kinda makes me glad I used to be a weekend editor, juggling phone calls, death notices, police scanners and the like.)
So, y'all need to pray for me, like BIG TIME. I know what I'm doing is way beyond my abilities, but I also know God will provide the strength, energy and wisdom in my stead.
In other news, I'm coming out to Cali the end of this summer (8/24 - 9/4 to be exact). Dinner, party and other dates are already being made, so email me with your reservations now! :)
I've been working on candidacy paperwork, scholarship applications and stuff. And thought I might share with you a bit of what I've written. It's a good synopsis of some of what's been going on me (see below).
On that note, I'm going to sign off.
Don't forget to pray!
Since coming to Asbury, I have encountered the Lord in new ways. I have felt the Spirit's hand on my shoulder, guiding me into deeper commitments, which I can only fulfill under God's grace. I've learned to lean more on the promises of God and less on my own abilities. I've stepped into ministry roles -- pastoral prayer, Christian evangelism, preaching, acts of mercy -- that I could only picture doing before.
Intellectually, I've been faced with philosophy, Biblical criticism, and theologies I had never encountered. These new ideas initially caused me fear and frustration. But further study, prayer and discussion have helped me discover that there is no truth claim, no question, no criticism that Almighty God and God's Kingdom cannot withstand. "All truth is God's truth," I've heard said and have come to believe it. Just as God is conquering my fears about my personal weaknesses, so too is God showing me that I need not fear for the strength and validity of the Christian gospel in today's marketplace of ideas.
I don't claim to have all the answers -- not even close. But my knowledge is growing and my faith is maturing. And I continue to be persuaded that my call to pastoral ministry, discerned in Christian community, is a holy and valid one.
It was a great semester, but I was definitely ready to be done with exams and everything. I had a lot of exams this semester as opposed to a lot of papers.
On Monday, my clinical pastoral education starts. It's going to be seriously intense. Much of the time when I'm working at the hospital, I'm going to be the only chaplaincy staff person on-site and when that's not the case, I'll still be carrying the beeper and the calls for pastoral care are going to come through me! Phew! (Kinda makes me glad I used to be a weekend editor, juggling phone calls, death notices, police scanners and the like.)
So, y'all need to pray for me, like BIG TIME. I know what I'm doing is way beyond my abilities, but I also know God will provide the strength, energy and wisdom in my stead.
In other news, I'm coming out to Cali the end of this summer (8/24 - 9/4 to be exact). Dinner, party and other dates are already being made, so email me with your reservations now! :)
I've been working on candidacy paperwork, scholarship applications and stuff. And thought I might share with you a bit of what I've written. It's a good synopsis of some of what's been going on me (see below).
On that note, I'm going to sign off.
Don't forget to pray!
Since coming to Asbury, I have encountered the Lord in new ways. I have felt the Spirit's hand on my shoulder, guiding me into deeper commitments, which I can only fulfill under God's grace. I've learned to lean more on the promises of God and less on my own abilities. I've stepped into ministry roles -- pastoral prayer, Christian evangelism, preaching, acts of mercy -- that I could only picture doing before.
Intellectually, I've been faced with philosophy, Biblical criticism, and theologies I had never encountered. These new ideas initially caused me fear and frustration. But further study, prayer and discussion have helped me discover that there is no truth claim, no question, no criticism that Almighty God and God's Kingdom cannot withstand. "All truth is God's truth," I've heard said and have come to believe it. Just as God is conquering my fears about my personal weaknesses, so too is God showing me that I need not fear for the strength and validity of the Christian gospel in today's marketplace of ideas.
I don't claim to have all the answers -- not even close. But my knowledge is growing and my faith is maturing. And I continue to be persuaded that my call to pastoral ministry, discerned in Christian community, is a holy and valid one.
posted by Michelle | 10:44 PM
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