Who has stood in the counsel of the Lord?

I've been thinking recently about Jeremiah 23 - the question put forth by the Lord - who has stood in My counsel? Who has perceived and heard My word? Who has marked My word and heard it?

I'm feeling very much aware of the hour. Very aware that there is so much going on around me that I cannot see, but that I can feel - things that must be contended for; lives and destinies and futures that are hanging in the balance. History that is being written in the moments and hours of the days that I'm living out here and now that feel so ordinary and mundane. I feel the anticipation of what God is doing both in this nation and in this generation, all across the globe. I feel the soberness of the continual increase of evil and natural disasters and moral decay that is filling the planet and therefore the news daily.

And I want to feel the yearning of God's heart in it all. What is He thinking and what is He feeling? I am feeling the urgency to contend for that which must be contended for. Oh, that I would be able to live my days and carry my heart in such a way as to pursue the place of His presence; the place of His counsel. Oh, that I would simply stop to listen. Oh, that my ear would be attentive to the yearnings of His heart. That I would have ears to hear and a heart to understand what the Spirit is saying.

And so, at the end of the day, what does it all look like? How does this translate into my everyday life? I'm not exactly sure, but of these things I'm certain. Prayer. Fasting. And romance. Romance? Yes, romance. I love John and Stasi Eldredge's definition of spirituality, out of their book, Captivating. "To be spiritual is to be in a romance with God." And of course, that can often feel like it's the hardest thing to do. (Aren't the other 'religious' definitions of spiritually often much easier to attain to?) For to engage in the romance of heaven, one must continually engage their heart and be willing to offer themselves - all of themselves - for the sake of love. But I want to live in the romance. I want to lift my vision higher and set my gaze up on Jesus. I want to commune with the One who lives within me. I want to love. Even as I'm washing the dishes and reading stories to Taylor and changing diapers and doing the laundry and cleaning the house.

After all, someone that I know once said that he who loves the most wins. That's what I want to be like when I grow up.

Random pieces of New Zealand facts and history....

Apparently the concept of Saturday shopping wasn't introduced in New Zealand until the 1970s - and this was only in the tourist spots. It wasn't until Nov. 15, 1980 that Saturday shopping for the whole nation was introduced.

New Zealand is the 3rd greatest meat-consuming nation in the world.

New Zealand has the 2nd most McDonald's per capita in the world.

One New Zealand adult eats and average of 27 liters of ice cream per year - the most of any country in the world.

New Zealand has 2 million cars for 4 million people.



- information courtesty of "Hidden in the Numbers", a TV program disclosing various statistics and random pieces of information concerning New Zealand culture and lifestyle.

New Table and Chairs and Gratuitous Thoughts about Dinnerware

Aaron and Taylor and I went out this afternoon to do a bit of shopping. We went out mostly just to get out of the house and go do something fun as a family, but we very quickly decided it was a good opportunity to look for things we actually needed to buy. (Great concept, huh?). So we started off looking for bookcases, and instead ended up buying a dining table and six chairs. (Funny how that happens). But we found this table and both loved it and the price was right......and we really, really needed it. We left our other dining set in KC 'cuz it was well used and was ready for a new one, and since arriving in NZ we've been using a plastic green patio set. Can't complain - it's been a blessing and has been much better than nothing - but needless to say, I am quite excited to finally have our own real dining set. Too bad it won't be ready for delivery for a few weeks. But I guess if I've lived this long with the one we've got, a few more weeks won't hurt.

Next items to purchase? (after the bookcases, of course).......new dinnerware to go with the new table. Our current set has slowly been depleted over the last few years, and the pieces that are left are quite chipped. I'm thinking it might be fun to venture into some square dinnerware. Quite trendy these days.....

Fresh fish

One of the definite perks of living in New Zealand is the bounty of the sea. We were at the grocery store today and picked up some fresh fish - never before been frozen.

Aaron cooked it for dinner tonight. You know fish is fresh and good when all you have to do is cook it in a small bit of olive oil and then season with salt and pepper and it tastes absolutely delicious. Seriously, it was some of the best fish I've maybe ever had.

Good thing we have more in the fridge for dinner tomorrow night.

Dear "Anonymous"

This is a dogwood tree.

It's official.

We're moving. Again. *Groan*. *Sigh*. Admittedly, this time it's only half-way across town, as opposed to half-way around the world. This I have in my favor, yet the sound of another move less than two months from now sounds nearly as daunting. I was just starting to feel settled...... The ironic thing is that we're moving by choice, not by necessity. Allow me to tell the story.

Despite my less-than-enthusiastic attitude, I do think it's a God-thing. Rather, let me say that I'm fairly certain it is God-thing. And there are lots of positive aspects to it all....if I can just get past the "moving" part. The house we're moving into is owned by friends of ours, who kept telling us since we moved here that as soon as it was vacant, they wanted to give us the option to move in. We thought that might have been around the beginning of the year (next year, that is), giving us a full year in the house we're in now. Well, they just told us a few days ago that the people currently in the house are moving out on June 30th. They're going to do some work on it (paint and carpet), having it ready for us to move into by around July 15th, and they've told us we can help them pick the colors (yeah!). It's situated on a beautiful piece of land, with fruit trees and avocado trees and quite a spacious yard. It has 4 bedrooms (although the 4th is quite small), has an office, only one bathroom, but (hallelujah!) it does have a dishwasher! It's within walking distance of the place we're having the internship classes now, and is right next-door to the future site for the House of Prayer/Missions Base campus. Which all happens to be in my favorite suburb of Tauranga.

Oh.......and.....did I mention that it's the house we lived in with the family who hosted us when we came down here for three months last year? The poetry of God continues. He's been speaking all along. He's got me cornered. Checkmate. I might as well just go ahead and say "yes".

So, I guess it will soon be time to pull out all those boxes again. Good thing we saved 'em all.

Full day

It's been a long day, but a good one. I was at the prayer room from 8am to noon (yeah!), led the 10am intercession prayer meeting, and then I taught class this afternoon. Granted, I got to teach on one of my favorite subjects, so it was especially fun today.

Having people for lunch tomorrow....always fun to have people over. Good thing I get to stay home all morning with my favorite little helper to get things sorted out. And then tomorrow night is Song of Solomon chapter 5. Just finished my notes a few minutes ago.

There's been a lot brewing the last few days, on many fronts....more details to come, but the winds sure are blowing......

Taylor's new song....

...that she made up all by herself. (okay, well, maybe we helped a little.....but she started singing about the grasshoppers being green all on her own...) It's really cute - she loves to get out her toy microphone and/or guitar (both birthday presents from Aunt Nikki) and sing away. Can you tell she's well on her way to becoming quite the little prophetic singer?

Grasshoppers are big and green
big and green
big and green.
Grasshoppers are big and green -
Not red!

Another tree story....

So after reading both Kelsey's and Marci's blogs, I've decided to jump on the tree-story bandwagon.

I have always loved Dogwood trees. We bought our house in Kansas City in November of '01 when the backyard was bare and lifeless. But when the spring rolled around several months later, I was overjoyed to discover not one, but two dogwood trees in our back yard. I loved them. I looked forward to them blooming every spring after the long winter finally ended. They were definitely a gift from Jesus to me.

It's a bit sad to know that we're selling that house - and the backyard that goes along with it. Maybe I'll just have to buy a dogwood tree here when the Lord gives us a house of our own.

A really, really, really good taste of home

We got a care package a week ago with a bag of Tostitos in it. So last night I made salsa (that came out surprisingly good, for not having all the right ingredients)....and the bag of Tostitos was opened. Yes, please......it was soooo yummy! Now you have to understand that there isn't anything even remotely close to Tostitos here. The best you can do is Dorito-like chips, without the seasoning. But those aren't even that common (most of the corn chips are flavored, like Doritos). Thanks, Dad and Joanie. And keep those Tostitos comin'!

Cannoli-making attempt

I have attempted making cannolis for the first time. One of the interns discovered an Italian food shop in town, and I found some cannoli shells. I attempted to make a ricotta filling tonight, and....well.....let's just say it was an absolute disaster. The consistency was more like very runny icing. I followed the recipe exactly, but obviously, something went very, very wrong somewhere. Hmmmmm.....

We love the Bennetts!

Had a great visit yesterday from Kirk and Dee Bennett and company from ZHOP (Zadok House of Prayer) in South Carolina. Kirk and Dee had been at IHOP from the beginning (and in KC since before Aaron and I were ever there) and just 6 months ago relocated to South Carolina to begin a House of Prayer There. Point being......we have lots of history with them, and were so excited to have them come visit us here in NZ. They joined us at the prayer room yesterday morning, and then Kirk taught class yesterday afternoon. It was great fun to catch up with old friends and share with them just a bit of what God is doing here in this nation.

Off to the prayer room soon to lead the 10am Intercession this morning.....

Welcome to the blog world, Kelsey!

One of my dear friends from Kansas City, Kelsey, has just started blogging.

I met Kelsey for the first time when she and her husband Randy invited Aaron and I out to their place in Cincinnati to help them do some fundraising in preparation for their transition to Kansas City to join staff at the International House of Prayer. I knew immediately that we would be friends. Although we never spent copious amounts of time together when we were both in KC (regrettably), we were both in the same moms group and still developed a good friendship. I have lots of respect and admiration for Kelsey. She's one of those people that's the "real deal", serious about her calling in life as a forerunner at the end of the age - while yet still very down-to-earth, an awesome mom of 3, and tons of fun to be around.

Anyways, I'm looking forward to reading more from Kelsey's world. Her thoughts promise to be a rich addition to the blogging world. I'm sure you'll find the same to be true.

Blast from the past

I have been inspired by a passing comment mady by Randy Bohlender in reference to Jars of Clay's first album. I am working on notes for my Song of Solomon class on Friday, trying very hard to not be distracted by melodies from an age past. Great album.

Taylor is two!

We had a great day celebrating Taylor ~ more to the point, she had a great day celebrating her birthday! She loved everything ~ the cake, the presents, the balloons and confetti and decorations, and all the love and phonecalls from family and friends, both near and far. 'Nuf said. I'll let the pictures tell the rest.


Opening presents in the morning


Nana put lots of confeitti in the box.....we made a big mess, but had lots of fun. Taylor especialy loved it!


Taylor loved her long-awaited moon cake!


No, she's not taking a bite....she's giving her moon cake kisses!

One of her favorite presents of the day - a purse (complete with money!) from Boppa and GiGi (my parents).

Of course there are truckloads of more cute pics, but that will do for now. It's late, and I have to lead the 8am devo tomorrow morning. It's time for bed - and although it was a wonderful day, mommy is very tired!

Ready for a very special birthday

It's another one of those after-11 o'clock-nights. Those seem to be more of a common occurrence around here recently. I must admit that I am a night owl....but since our daughter is definitely a morning bird, well, late nights aren't as forgiving as they used to be.

Tonight's late night is for good reason, though. With tomorrow being Taylor's birthday and all, there was a wee bit of decorating needing to be done around here. And a cake that needed to be baked. So the moon and stars are now hung, the streamers and balloons taped to the wall and to the light fixture in the center of the room, balloons precariously tied to the high chair, and presents on the coffee table. Yes, presents on the coffee table.

You see, Aaron and I had this discovery the other day - hard to believe it was the first time in almost 5 years of marriage that this topic came up - but apparently the Walsh and Warren family birthday traditions were quite different when we were growing up. In the Walsh family, presents were always opened in the morning on birthdays. In the Warren family, presents were always opened in the evening, after dinner, along with cake and ice cream. It was one of those stereotypical "first-year-of-marriage discoveries".....neither one of us could imagine changing the tradition and doing it differently in our own family. I guess it's one of those things where you want your children to have the same great memories you had when you were a kid growing up.....so it feels like things have to be done the same way. So we reached a compromise....half the presents in the morning for Taylor, the other half in the evening. Works for me. Who knows....maybe I'll discover that there's something really special about doing it in the morning. But for now, the compromise wins. Good thing Taylor is too little to know the difference! :-)

Anyways, can't wait to see Taylor's face in the morning when she sees the living room all decorated. That will make the late night worth it.

So.....just out of curiosity.....what are the birthday traditions in your families?

I have nothing to complain about....

Seriously, I think I might just have the best job in the world. And definitely the best husband. My day today? Went to the prayer room at 8am. Lead intercession at 10am. Came home for lunch to see my beautiful family. Left at 1:30 to go teach class for the interns until 3:30. All while Aaron stayed home and enjoyed the day with Tay-Tay. Now don't get me wrong, I love staying home with Taylor and being a mom - it seriously is one of my most favorite things. But there are just some days that it's nice to have a change of pace and get out of the house and do something different. And we're in a situation now that enables me to do just that. It really is the best of both worlds. This I have to be grateful for.

Question of the day....

Is it stranger to have Christmas in summer, or no Christmas in winter?

This, my friends, is worth pondering.

Someone turns two on Friday....

I can't believe it's been almost two years since we brought our little princess home from the hospital. Wow. But we'll save the reminiscing for later.....

I've decided to forego the big party this year, and stick with a small celebration with just the family. She's still little enough that she doesn't know the difference, and it's been so full-on recently that, well, I figured we'd save the party for another year when she could understand more what it's about. When they're this little, the birthday parties are still mostly for the parents anyway!

A few weeks back, we got out the book with the pictures of all the different birthday cakes, and Taylor chose the "moon cake" (since she loves the moon so much) - so the moon cake it is. I'm going to continue the theme by making some cut-out moons and stars from yellow cardstock to hang from the ceiling - along with streamers and balloons, too. And of course we have to throw some pink in the color scheme, too, since this is a little girl's birthday, after all.....

And we got two packages in the mail today - one from Aaron's parents, and one from mine - and she doesn't know they came. So of course we're saving them for her to open on her birthday, which will only add to the fun.

So all in all, things are shaping up nicely for the big day at the end of the week. I think I'm more excited about it than she is! I can't imagine who much fun it will be when she's old enough to be excited about it with us.......

Who would have thought.....

I don't think that I've yet blogged this story yet, but I've been thinking about it lots this weekend, so I figured now is as good a time as any to tell it. I love this story because it gives me courage. I love telling it, mostly for my own sake, rather than for the sake of those who hear it. I love this story, because it is to me the poetry of God, written in the hours and minutes of my own life. It is an undeniable reminder to me that He is real, that He is always speaking, that He knows all things, and that He really loves me.

It begins in August of 2003. Aaron and I had come to New Zealand for ministry/vacation. It was my first time to come to this country. We were driving north from his hometown to Auckland, and on a whim, we decided to go have a weekend away, just to ourselves....and of all places, Aaron decided to take me to Mt. Maunganui. Now, for those who aren't familiar with New Zealand geography, Mt. Maunganui is the 'sister city' to Tauranga, separated only by a bridge and some water. It's literally 10 minutes or less from our house.

But the story gets better. That weekend was one of those 'defining times' in our life. On many different levels. But one conversation in particular, I will never forget. We were walking along a very deserted beach (August is winter here, remember), and for the first time in our married life, we began discussing whether the Lord would ever have us move to New Zealand someday. It was scary, overwhelming, and very uncomfortable for me. It was one of those "let's finish this conversation as soon as possible" sort of talks. Neither of us knew it then, but God was speaking. Who would have known that two and a half years later, we would be calling that place home???

But the story gets even better. When we moved here in January, our house wasn't going to be ready to move in for several days, so we stayed at a friend's flat. The ironic thing is that his flat was literally a block behind the hotel we stayed at in '03, and I remember driving up that road past that house when we visited back then.....I mean, really, what are the chances?

Every time I go over to Mt. Maunganui, I always remember that weekend. And I remember the sovereignty of God. And every time, my heart finds a bit more courage when I realize that even back then, God was speaking to us.....but in His kindness, He knew that if we knew that He was speaking, it would have been way too much for us to handle. So in His wisdom, He arranged all these events so that we wouldn't realize it was Him speaking until we really needed to know. I love Him for that. It makes me feel safe in His sovereignty. That He was in this thing all along. And if I know that, I think that I can make it.

To expound on the previous post...

We were awoken at 5:55am Thursday morning by a phone call from a very concerned family member who was worried that we were about to be washed away in a tsunami. Apparently on Wednesday night, there was a rather large earthquake off the coast of Tonga, which prompted tsunami warnings for many of the Pacific Islands, as well as the northeast coast of the north island of New Zealand. That's us.

Obviously, there was no tsunami and we didn't get washed away. That's a fortunate thing. But it really does get one wondering. I must admit that I have been rather convinced for a long time that there will be a tsunami coming to NZ. Whether this is my pessimistic, worse-case-scenario side of me coming out, or whether it's simply doing the math that we live on the rim of fire, and earthquakes and such are not un-likely 'round these parts of the world, or whether it's doing the math that apocalyptic judgments are most certainly coming to the earth....well, who knows. But being half-awake, half-asleep at 5:55am the other day, for a few moments, I did wonder, "Is this that?"

The whole ordeal has prompted quite a few conversations amongst people and on the media - is New Zealand prepared to handle such a catastrophe? Where would you go if......? How far do you live from the beach? Good questions, to be sure. Although, I believe further questions must follow. Am I prepared in my heart for the flood - or should I say, the collision of righteousness and evil - coming to planet earth? Will I run to Him or from Him in that hour? Have I built my life on the rock, or on the sand? Jesus said that as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man.

One thing I know for sure, it's time to build an ark......

All tsunami warnings for the Pacific have been cancelled.

No need to worry.

What I know now that I wish I knew (and appreciated) then...about America.

First of all, everything is cheap, even things we think are expensive. From groceries to gasoline. Yes, even gasoline. 'Round these parts of the world, we pay NZ $1.70 a litre - that's NZ $6.42 a gallon.

Second of all, we have a lot. Even when it seems we have nothing. If I can see this while living in another prosperous Western nation after only 3 months, I can only imagine how the differences would be magnified when one compares America to the majority of the world living in poverty.

Third, competition in the world of enterprise is a good thing. And a massive blessing. When there's no competetion, the price of services (i.e. cell phones and internet) rise. Dramatically. It's cheaper for me to call America than it is for me to call my husband across town on his cell phone. Like, over $1 per minute cheaper.

Granted, there are a lot of negative things about America. This is true. I just wish that while I lived there, I had eyes to see and appreciate all the positive things - yea, luxuries - that are just a part of normal, everyday life.

Now this is glorious....

I think this is pretty close to the perfect afternoon. Or, at least, the perfect hour. Taylor is sleeping. It's raining outside - and a bit chilly. My "Macintosh" scented Yankee Candle is burning on the coffee table, filling the entire room with fragrance. Ruth Fazel's violin CD is playing quietly in the background. And I get to study the Song of Solomon in preparation for Friday night's class. Now, if only this could last for hours.........

Silence is golden....well, maybe not in this context.

I must apologize for my silence recently. As I'm sure you can imagine, unpacking a container full of stuff and trying to get organized while still carrying on with life full steam has left me very tired. And did I mention that our precious almost-two-year-old is in on the action, too? Let the reader understand.....

But to her credit, she has turned into quite the little helper - for real. Take for instance, the other night. I was in the living room doing something, and Taylor was in her room. A few minutes later, she came running in, saying excitedly, "Helper, helper!" I went to see what she was talking about, and found that she had picked up all her shoes scattered across her floor and put them in the correct basket - all by herself - without me even having to ask her. Can we please maintain this behavior, for the next, say, 16 years?

Slowly, but surely, the house is coming along. There are still quite a few unpacked boxes that have fallen by the wayside in the midst of being a wife, being a mom, leading an internship, preparing to lead prayer meetings, preparing (and actually teaching) classes on the Song of Solomon, preparing for the next internship starting in August, doing the laundry, doing the grocery shopping, trying to sell our house back home.......hmmmm....no wonder life has felt pretty crazy the last week or so.

Speaking of our house, it's now under contract, as of yesterday. Yeah! Hopefully everything will go smoothly from now until closing, which will be the end of May. If everything goes through, this is a massive answer to prayer.