It is Sunday morning and I got up early so I could come into my office and catch up on some work before church and some football this afternoon. The semester is now done with 6 weeks and it is going well. I have some fun students, but feel rather overwhelmed with the number of them(about 140).  It takes a lot to keep up with them.

I went to the homecoming game yesterday with NW and Penn State and we won with an amazing effort in the 4th quarter.  It almost made me cry as I watched them fight back.  It was so moving because of the way that they really put their hearts into it.  It made me think of a verse in Colossians 3:23-"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters".  Our lives need to be an example of working unto God not man and wanting to please Him.

Funny story...as I was making my bed this morning, I noticed a spider crawled out from my sheets.  It just sat there as I freaked out.  I grabbed it and took it to the toilet for its end of life ritual.  I have had about 4 spider bites in the last month maybe it was this guy or others.  The only thing I am wondering is if I will turn into spiderwoman??   I guess there are benefits to having spider superpowers.

January

Dearly beloved readers,
Thanks for keeping up with my little posting. And, thanks for the birthday greetings and the lovely cupcakes that the student fellowship group brought for me last night. It was very sweet.
"Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." Col 3:2 Where is your mind today? Is it on the things around us that we see or those things that are invisible to us, yet very real.
"And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Col 3:17 God says whatever we do...that is everything, right? How are we glorifying God in our lives? How is He known because of us?
Word and deed both hand in hand, both working to bring light to others!!
Love you all.

shadow of things to come

Colossians 2:17 says: "shadow of the things that were to come" when referring to things here on earth. What is that about? We live in the shadows. We only see a reflection of who Christ is and what God is all about. We see it in the beauty of nature, the faces of others, and we feel it as we experience His love. Our lives are mere reflections of His glory.
Many times I gaze upon the beauty of nature and imagine the greater glory and awesome demonstration of God. If we only see a shadow, think of what the actual object it. As I was walking today noticing the shadows, it made me wonder what the actual object was that it was reflecting.
The point of the verse that I shared is that we often get caught up in things that are only temporary and miss out on the reality of Jesus Christ. Let's make a point to notice the reality and not just the shadows.

fall 2011

Now, we are done with 4 weeks of the fall semester and I am loving it so far. I really enjoy my classes: nonverbal communication, small group communication and technology and comm. My students really seem into it and are doing well.
I also am nearing the end of my geospatial intelligence master's certificate. I started last Sept and only have a 1 credit summary course to wrap up. It has been fun learning about geographic information and how useful it is in so many areas of life. I am hoping to do some consulting or work with this when I wrap up.
Just a little update for the day...

a year later

Yes, it is a year since I last wrote and I don't even know if anyone reads these, but I will write a little in case.
Another year has passed and it was a very busy time for me. Last year I took on the office of President of American Communication Assoc. It is an international professional group of communicators. It was a challenge to try to organize and fix many things. It was also a time to plan a conference and make sure people were connecting. It was a successful year on many levels and a good challenge to lead in a wise and meaningful way. I am glad to be done and to focus again on tasks at hand.
It seems when I do things beyond my capabilities that I find great power to do these and to do it well. I was also teaching a bigger than normal load in my classes and that was a huge challenge working with close to 300 students in one semester.
On top of all this, I started a graduate certificate program in geospatial intelligence. It is very interesting and also a lot of work with much reading and new material for me to learn. I got an A in my first course. I will take another one next semester. I like to learn and explore new territories like this.
God bless you this year!

interesting facts

John Cadbury, a Quaker, opened shop in Birmingham in 1824, selling tea, coffee and hot chocolate - as an alternative to alcohol

160 cars can drive side by side on the Monumental Axis in Brazil, the world's widest road.

Ancient Egyptians slept on pillows made of stone.

Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.

Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors.

end of the year

My blog page has to be the most annoying to read. So, I thought I would at least post one more before the year ends.
It was a good year in many ways and full of lots of fun with people and places, but my past semester was so intense that it is almost hard to remember all the good things.
I am reminded that God does make all things new and that He does use circumstances to bring about change in our lives. I love that God does keep His hand upon us for guidance and help when we need it. It is good to know He watches over us and directs our steps.
Right now the snow is falling and a fresh coat has fallen to cover the ground. That is similar to the way His love comes and covers us...His blood covers us and cleans us and restores us!!
My house is quiet and I love the quiet right now, but last night some friends came over and we played our instruments and sang and just enjoyed the sweet presence of God. I did play my new electric guitar and that was fun.
I still have much to do to prepare for the semester ahead but I do have another week.
If you are reading this, receive His blessings of love in your life this day!

something new

I know all my fans out there are waiting for an update...well, life has just been so busy that I don't have time to write about it.
The new fall semester has started and I am off running. I teach on Tue and Thur, but also do an online class and other projects.
Wedding attendance is increasing this fall as I seem to have so many friends who keep getting engaged and married. So, I am going to pick up some more work so I can afford to go...especially to the one in Mexico. It was fun last weekend to go to Sel and Tisha's wedding. Sel is from Ghana and his parents and brother came over. It is always fun to meet new people from other countries.
I just finished preparing for my lectures tomorrow and now I am tired out after a full day.
Well, if you are reading this, I hope you are very blessed by God in some special way!

travels in May

This past May I went to my European adventure trip. I went to Germany to Italy to Spain and then to the Ukraine. I loved the beauty and relaxing times in Italy. The history and architecture in Spain. The people and culture of Ukraine.
When I went to Ukraine, I met some people there with a mission to visit orphanages and train leaders from there and other countries. It was great to get to know some people and be in a place that was so totally different. All the signs were in Russian and the people drive very oddly. It was a great challenge. I did a lot of hand motions and non-verbal communication.
Overall, it was nice and a good to just get away. I do have a ton of good stories.

time for an update

Hey all my blog fans...it is April 15th and the end of another tax season. It doesn't affect me so much, but my brother is a CPA and has been very busy. I always feel badly for him, but he is good at it and does my taxes for me...thank God!
The semester is down to the last 2.5 weeks now. I am trying to figure out everything I need to wrap up. I will be missing my students. Some of them have been in my classes for a while now.
After school I am heading to Europe. It will be a nice break from things. This year my new country to visit is the Ukraine. I can't wait.
God bless you all.