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Worship Confessional

June 18, 2013 by Solacegirl

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This past Saturday a team of us went into a local prison to serve in worship services.  We had to wait a while to get it, but that gave us an opportunity to talk story and get to know each other better.  We didn’t have any issues getting people or instruments into the facility.  (Phew…that was one of my biggest prayer requests.) As we headed down the long cement walk way to the gym we looked up and saw a beautiful rainbow hanging over us and an overwhelming feeling of peace came over me.  (Another answered prayer.)

Our sound check happened while the groups of inmates were led into the gym.  While the sound team, also inmates, were making sure our sound levels were okay, the Halau discussed where they would perform their dance for the services.  We knew we may have the entire time allotted for the services or maybe not.  Our sound check was the prelude, which is a good thing because then the men were that much more familiar with the songs for the service.

Our set list:

  1. Our God
  2. The Glorious Cross
  3. Revelation Song
  4. Halau: Forgiveness
  5. All Who Are Thirsty/chorus of Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Notes on the nuts and bolts of the set:

  1. They seemed to respond well, and picked up The Glorious Cross pretty quickly.  They seemed to know Our God, and especially The Revelation Song.  Overall the sets went pretty well.  I had trouble hearing Joe’s guitar especially with the reprise of Glorious Cross.  Next time I’ll make sure to ask the guys to boost it a bit.  We also need to make sure that we have extra music for the play out, and/or at least that we talk it through before we sing it.  We tried The Everlasting and did well for the chorus, but I’ve never really sang the melody alone.  When Joe switched to the harmony I was a little lost.  We made it work.
  2. The Halau was fabulous.  They dressed very conservatively and Gayle kept the movements discreet.  They danced to Mathew West’s “Forgiveness.”  One of the really cool things about this is that a few months ago I heard the song on the radio, and I had a picture of Gayle dancing hula to it.  WOW!  I saw that same picture on Saturday in real life.  Thank you Jesus.

I’ve missed leading worship; not just the singing part, but also putting together a set list and helping to craft a service.  It was such a blessing to hear the response of the inmates to the music and to the message.  Pastor Louie is the person for this time.  On so many levels he understands what these men have been through.  Hopefully I will be able to be a part of something like this again.

Posted in worship, worship confessional, worship leading | Tagged | 1 Comment »

From There To Here

June 18, 2013 by Solacegirl

Our trek to the most remote island chain in the world started almost 12 years ago.  Even though we never really felt compelled to travel here, we jumped at a chance to buy a voucher for two tickets at a garage sale.  We chose a hotel that was being remodeled.  We traveled one month after 9/11.  There was plenty of room to spread out on the beach, and we found really good deals at the market place.  The total trip cost around $1,000, with the tickets included.  We found ourselves pleasantly surprised by how much we were enjoying our surroundings.  About two days into the trip we prayed for God to show us how we would minister in this place.

A couple of years later my husband won a trip to a neighbor island through a sales promotion.  It was beautiful.  The island moved at an even slower pace.  The hotel upgraded our room to an ocean view.  We found the perfect breakfast place, and loved learning the local history.  Sitting on the beach during sunset with our feet in the surf while listening to a band play James Taylor covers was pretty magical.  Again, we prayed how God would have us minister in this place.

Not long after that my husband was invited to teach and train the sound team of a local church here on the island.  They graciously offered me a ticket to join him.  I spent the week reading books, swimming, and taking in the local sites, sounds, and cuisine.  It was a pretty sweet adventure.  We left wondering how God would end up using us on this Island.

Our home state is beautiful.  Our hometown is an hour from the beach and an hour from the mountains.  It didn’t take long to get to Mom and Dad’s, and an even shorter time to get to my in-laws.  Siblings and nieces live close by.  Why would we want to move away from it all?

Our family spent a month here the year before we moved.  By the end of that month we were invited to come join the church for a season.  We loved the people.  We really believed in the church’s core values, and  were encouraged by the emphasis they put on creatively sharing the Gospel.  It still wasn’t an easy decision.  We thought it through.  We knew we had to say yes, or we would regret for the rest of our lives.

It’s been almost a year.  We continue to pray how God wants us to use our gifts here in our new church.  We are still figuring out the balance of ministry life and family life.  It’s a bit more challenging, honestly a lot more challenging, without a support system like we had at home.

There have been moments of greatness, and that keeps us pushing forward.  In a future post I’ll share a timeline of events of this past year.  It’s been a doozie, but one that is full of the evidence of God’s handy work in getting us from there to here.

Posted in adventure, God, Hawaii, ministry life, obey to point of risk | 3 Comments »

Working My Gifts

June 14, 2013 by Solacegirl

This is a funny scene from the movie, “Bowfinger.”  Sometimes God calls us to work outside of our comfort zone, or we just have to do things we aren’t comfortable with because no one else is available.  Oh, the relief we feel when we get back to doing what we are good at, right?

Posted in a funny thing, gifts, just because | Leave a Comment »

Life On An Island

June 13, 2013 by Solacegirl

Anyone who has spent time here will probably tell you a couple of things. “The Islands are beautiful.”  “Hawaiians are so welcoming.”  “Everything is so expensive.”  “The traffic is horrible.”

We knew all of these things before we moved here.  Our entire family came for a month a year and a half ago.  It was such a blessing.  Even though we lived on the edge of Waikiki we still had a taste of living local, and what it really would take to live here full-time.

My first trip for family grocery shopping left me tears.  I was only 3/4 of the way through the list and I had gone through what typically would have been a month’s food/incidentals budget.  I stood next to Jeff and had to fight off the tears.  How would we make it for the next month?  As always, God provided.  God continues to provide.

We’ve learned how to stretch things, that Costco is really an economical place to shop, and that what before would have been freezer meals are lunch for the next two days.  We don’t eat out very often, but we didn’t do that much before we moved.  (Oh wait, unless it was at the D.Q.  All those from home know which one I’m talking about.)  Simple first world problems, right?

We have also learned that, for now, we will have to drive to where ever we want to go.  That’s just how it’s going to be.  We have beach chairs, the beach bag, towels, and mats packed in the back of the car.  We always bring water bottles and snacks too.  It’s what homeschoolers do wherever they live, so that they are ready for an adventure in the school of the outdoors.  We just know that our gas budget is also doubled since we moved.  The cost of a yearly registration for one car is almost triple what we paid for a two-year registration.  We could ride the bus everywhere, but for this phase of life we are choosing to keep the cars.

It’s all part of life here on the islands.  We moved with our eyes wide open.  It gives us an ever grateful heart for the little things.  It forces an even deeper dependency on God.

Posted in family life, Hawaii, homeschool, ministry life | 1 Comment »

The Red Whale On Sunset Beach

June 9, 2013 by Solacegirl

We had the red whale and a few hours to kill.  We headed out to North Shore.    I have never been there, but my husband went on a scouting trip the last time he was here and sent me some amazing photos of white sand beaches and turquoise blue water.  It was the first week of December and my outfit consisted of a swimsuit, shorts, and flip flops (from now on I will refer to them as slippers).  We had bottles of water, apples, and Hawaiian music playing on the radio.  This was going to be a great day.

The red whale is an older suburban that didn’t have air conditioning, but did have a squeaking passenger door that needed a little extra help staying shut.  When visiting the church we were allowed to drive it.  We loved it because it wasn’t a rental and felt like we had a little more legitimacy with the locals as we drove around the island.

We headed through Haleiwa.  As we hit Sunset Beach we noticed scaffolding and large signs on the beach that said “Triple Crown of Surfing.”  Ah, sweet!  We ran into a professional surfing competition.  We couldn’t miss this, so we pulled into a field with a “Parking $5” sign and found a bruddah helped us pull into a great spot.

Oregon beaches are beautiful and majestic.  It’s a good distance from the dune to the water.  You have time to contemplate how long you think you can last in the freezing water before your feet are too numb to walk.  Here on the island its 10 feet from car to water and you set an alarm to remind you to get out so you can apply a second coat of sunscreen.

The biggest difference to me are the wave.  In Oregon there are big waves, but you usually watch them from your car or hike in to some remote part of a beach to see them.  Here it’s like the wave breaks in your face.  The waves are big and right there.  I don’t feel like I have adequate words to describe them.  Before now I’ve never seen waves like this..  The churn of the water as it hits the reef really makes a person understand the need to respect the power of the ocean.

Posted in Hawaii, Solacegirl in the 808 | 1 Comment »

A Heart For Adventure As Long As There’s A Familiar Place To Land

June 8, 2013 by Solacegirl

We were heading toward the Banyan Temple.  The name wasn’t just a clever title.  The banyan tree had taken over, uprooting the large stones as it sought to secure itself.  One tree started where the next one ended.  Its roots winding around steps, walls and windows; a reminder of how easily God’s creation can take over what is man-made.  This is just what we saw from the outside.

As I stepped out of the van my German skin rosied up quickly in the heat and humidity.  I looked for the nearest shade.  Our guide was concerned enough to stop by a vendor to buy me a wide brimmed hat with the word “Angkor” printed in big bold letters across the front.  She seemed to be looking out for me.  Earlier in the week she brought me a bag of mangosteens in hopes that by me consuming them I would get my ankles back.  I don’t know if they really helped my cankles, but it was some of the best tasting fruit I’ve ever had.

The banyan wasn’t the only thing that I noticed on the drive in.  There were elephants everywhere; large, loping creatures effortlessly transporting people from point A to point B.

“Riding an elephant is on my life list,” I mentioned to the Sistahs.

“Then we’ll have to do it,” replied one of them, “My treat.”

They ushered me over up the steps into the banyan tree and onto our seat on top of the elephant.  I reached down ever so slowly and brushed by fingers against its skin.  The softness surprised me.  The lurch forward caught us off guard, and we giggled with delight as we started the slow procession into the temple.

Posted in adventure | 3 Comments »

Worship Confessional: 1st one from Hawaii

June 6, 2013 by Solacegirl

It has been over a year since I put together a set list and led a team in worship.  Due to various health issues and job conflicts since our move I have not been on a worship team more times than I can count on my fingers.  I must confess that I am nervous about it.  I have a small team for a visit to a local prison.  The halau has graciously offered to perform a dance during the services.  Our pastor of prison ministry will share a message on the subject of “forgiveness.”  I pray that my hands have strength to play then notes.  I pray that my voice has the strength to carry the notes.   I pray that our music would not be a distraction from but an attraction to Jesus. I pray that God keeps my humble in the process.  Yes husband, I am praying that prayer again.  He always wants me to let him know when I pray that prayer.

Tomorrow I have my first run through with the other worship leader for this service.  He’ll play the guitar and lead out on a couple of songs.  I’ll lead out on a couple of songs.  Looking forward to sitting behind a piano as I sing.  I feel a little rusty, but practicing will help.  Working the kinks out of the set list will help.  Getting this first run through out of the way will help.

The set list:

  1. Our God
  2. The Glorious Cross (a fabulous original by one of the team)
  3. All Who Are Thirsty
  4. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus (chorus only)
  5. What Joy

Prayers are appreciated for the upcoming worship services at the prison.

Posted in worship, worship confessional, worship leading | 2 Comments »

Bedtime by Oreo

June 6, 2013 by Solacegirl

This reminds me of our youngest.

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Eat Pray Love

June 6, 2013 by Solacegirl

I’ve been working through a book titled “Decisive.”  It is a great book on making better decisions in life and work.  It’s also more like doing work than just relaxing, so yesterday, at the library, I checked out what I consider to be a decadent read, “Eat, Pray, Love.”

I enjoyed the movie.  The idea of traveling the world is a life long dream of mine.  Seeking a deeper understanding of how I fit into the larger cosmos is for me a constant.  I have no issues with eating really good food.

As I started reading the book I found two things that I don’t relate to.  The first is that I’m not looking for a way out of my marriage.  I made the mistake of mentioning this part of the book to my husband by saying, “You know there is a part in the book where the author says that she doesn’t want to be married anymore…”  The look on his face said that I needed to quickly make my point.  I said, “Don’t worry Honey.  I was going to finish by saying that I don’t want out of my marriage.”  Make sure you preface statements like that better than I did.  The second is that I call myself a Christian because I am a follower of Jesus Christ.  This is a statement I have complete faith in saying, and I hope that it doesn’t mean I can’t engage in a meaningful conversation with a person who doesn’t share my faith.  That last statement is a whole other blog post.

Anyway, I am looking forward to reading the rest of the book.  Any good reads that you want to share?

Currently working through these books:

  1. Decisive: How To Make Better Choices In Life And Work by Chip and Dan Heath
  2. Lost Kingdom: Hawaii’s last queen, The Sugar Kings, and America’s First Imperial Adventure by Julia Flynn Siler
  3. Every Body Matters: Strengthening Your Body to Strengthen Your Soul by Gary Thomas
  4. Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
  5. Freefall to Fly: A Breathtaking Journey Toward a Life of Meaning by Rebekah Lyons

Posted in books, God, Uncategorized | Tagged | 8 Comments »

Stepping Back In

June 6, 2013 by Solacegirl

After well over a year, I’m back in the blogisphere.  I’ve been wanting to get back to posting since we decided to make the big move to the islands.  I’m still working out the format.  Should each day be a different topic?

We have experienced so much since moving here.  Ministry life in itself as a topic can fill volumes.  So much can be said about homeschooling.  Uprooting our family from a culture we’ve known our entire lives and transplanting into Polynesia is a topic I never thought I could address.  If you know me then you know I’ll share a little on each and probably a whole lot more.

Posted in homeschool, ministry life, Solacegirl in the 808 | Tagged , | Leave a Comment »

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