I love new. Just hearing the word "new" excites me. New people, new places, new opportunities, new hair color, new stuff, you name it, I like new ones! Not to say that I'm not satisfed with the current, but there's something so wonderful about "new". I've never really looked at January as a new beginning or a time for change, but this year I have really been feeling this "newness" sweep over me. I have a God-fire lit under me. <--(These bursts of energy don't just magically appear, you know.) I can feel the Lord restoring me, and I believe it's for His purpose. I want to use it! You know the phrase "Use it or lose it!"? I think that is especially true when it comes to inspiration. If I don't use it when I've got it, it eventually passes. Even if I accomplish the task I had originally set out to do, it never gets done with the passion and the exuberance it would have if I had done it in the moment. So, here are some of my "news" for 2012:
1. Ombudsmanship (<--Look! Another "new"! I made up a new word!)
An Ombudsman, for any of my non-military peeps, is a person who is appointed by the Commanding Officer of a unit to be the link between military family members and the Command's higher leadership. Doc's Commanding Officer has asked me to be the Ombudsman for Doc's Command, and I've accepted! This is a volunteer position that I am so very looking forward to filling! It's something that's really been missing for me since I moved here. I have a great church where I volunteer, and I love that, but I've always done something within the military community as well. I've volunteered in this way with every other Command we've been attatched to, but only as an assistant to the Ombudsman (or "Family Readiness Officer" when we were with the Marine Corps. Same thing, different title, every branch just HAS to have their own terminology to make things difficult!) I'm excited about this for so many reasons, but mainly because this is something that I'm very passionate about. I would even dare to say that this is the thing I'm most passionate about. (for now, anyway) God has given me so much grace in the area of being a military spouse. I adapt easily and I welcome the moves and quick-paced, split-second decisions. (remember the title of this post?) But these are tough things to go through, and I welcome the opportunity to provide information about resources to help other families. I have some official training to go through, and after I complete it (around the end of February) I will have a Blackberry, a cheesy nametag, and an outlet to show people the love of God by helping them through stressful transitions and situations. Praising God for this NEW opportunity.....
2. Bible Study
The main reason we were excited about moving into this new house is because it is so much bigger than any we've ever lived in. The brand spanking new features and neighborhood full of kids doesn't hurt either, but the space we have here is just wonderful, and we intend on using it! We're starting a weekly small group bible study here! This will be our first time hosting, and we're very excited! We're hoping to be able to invite some of our neighbors in this military housing community, as well as others from our church and this area in general. We'll be doing a marriage focus, and we have such an awesome curriculum! We're doing Mark Gungor's Laugh Your Way to a Better Marriage. It's a study for anyone at any stage of their married life, founded with Biblical principles of marriage, and it is absolutely hilarious. Seriously. Watch this 5 minute clip. You'll roll on the ground laughing and find yourself saying over and over "That is SO true!!!!"
See what I mean??? He's wonderful! One (of many) really awesome thing about this series is that it's not something that you have to have a huge prior biblical knowledge to be able to understand. In fact, you don't have to have any at all. It's very lehman. We're really hoping to attract a well-rounded group, so that we can all feed off of each others experiences (only what people want to share, that is, that's absolutely NOT a requirement of this study) and gain wisdom not only from studying the Bible, but also from one another and the things God has already taught each of us throughout our lives. We're potlucking every session, and we have lots of toys and playgrounds nearby for the kids! (Perhaps even a babysitter in the works!) If you're in the area, please join us and tell your friends!! It will be such a great time! And also, pray over this study! Pray that we have a great turnout and that God leads us to host graciously and with servants' hearts.
3. Lifestyle Change
This sounds very typical "My New Years Resolution is to lose 10 pounds", but I can assure you it's not. This is something very personal to me, and I'll be writing an entire post just on this alone, so for today I'll keep this minimal. There are things in my life that are out of control. For the sake of my health and the health of my children and family, I have to get them under control. It's going to be the fight of my life, and in some ways it feels like it will be a fight for my life. It's going to be harder than anything I've ever done, and it's going to be ugly. Very, very, very ugly. But it's going to happen. Because it has to. Period.
SO! Let's recap: I'm becoming an Ombudsman, we're starting a Bible study, I'm taking on some of the dark, toxic parts of my lifestyle, all in edition to unpacking from our recent move, overhauling our finances, raising two kids and supporting my husband in his career and school endeavors. Hmmmmm, (in my best sarcastic optimism voice) maybe I should add a NEW therapist to that list! :) Daily prayerful maintenance checks will ensure that we're not getting overwhelmed, don't worry. Prayers welcome, peeps!
"Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act." Psalm 37:5
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