wendt on a journey

going somewhere

2010-10-04T10:14:00.001-07:00

i'm not a wendt anymore... so i'm going dahlke.

http://shewendtdahlke.wordpress.com/

huh?

2010-06-03T22:05:00.000-07:00

well... but... if you bought a lime, why are you expecting it to taste like an apple?

2010-05-31T11:14:00.000-07:00

2010-05-29T11:12:00.000-07:00

2010-05-28T11:11:00.000-07:00

2010-05-22T11:08:00.000-07:00

2010-05-08T11:09:00.000-07:00

2010-05-06T11:18:00.000-07:00

2010-04-30T11:06:00.000-07:00

to the man in trader joe's parking lot

2010-04-23T11:27:00.001-07:00

Sir, we were both standing right there. Obviously the dent in my car is from your car door and the white paint is from your shiny little car. This all happened when you were opening your door to unload your groceries. I don't so much care that you have left a dent in my car that will cause me to remember this day for many months to come, but I care that you would stand there and lie to my face shirking all responsibility of this unfortunate event. And, I'm sorry you feel you need to lie about it.

Whether you are going to apologize or not, I want you to know you are forgiven. You certainly aren't the first to leave an indelible mark on Holly Honda, and likely, you won't be the last. But my heart breaks just the same... and, it's not breaking for my car, sir. It's breaking for you...

2010-04-18T11:05:00.000-07:00

2010-04-11T11:04:00.000-07:00

2010-04-03T11:02:00.000-07:00

journey

2010-01-29T08:21:00.000-08:00

"If we postpone our journey until the storm dies down, we may never get started at all." - JI Packer

ordinary

2010-01-07T04:54:00.000-08:00

We need faith and the mind of the Lord Jesus to recognize something of lasting value in even our most ordinary tasks. - Philip Yancey

lifetime

2010-01-06T10:47:00.000-08:00

it just might take that long.

new year prayer

2010-01-04T14:47:00.000-08:00

O Lord,
Length of days does not profit me
except the days are passed in Thy presence,
in Thy service, to Thy glory.
Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides,
sustains, sanctifies, aids every hour,
that I may not be one moment apart from Thee,
but may rely on Thy Spirit
to supply every thought,
speak in every word,
direct every step,
prosper every work,
build up every mote of faith,
and give me a desire
to show forth Thy praise;
testify Thy love,
advance Thy kingdom.I launch my bark on the unknown waters of this year,
with Thee, O Father as my harbour,
Thee, O Son, at my helm,
Thee O Holy Spirit, filling my sails.
Guide me to heaven with my loins girt,
my lamp burning,
my ear open to Thy calls,
my heart full of love,
my soul free.Give me Thy grace to sanctify me,
Thy comforts to cheer,
Thy wisdom to teach,
Thy right hand to guide,
Thy counsel to instruct,
Thy law to judge,
Thy presence to stabilize.
May Thy fear by my awe,
Thy triumphs my joy.

~ from the Valley of Vision

Christmas cookies

2009-12-17T10:45:00.001-08:00

don't you hate it when someone gives you a plate of Christmas cookies with a variety of different kinds? when you eat one that is excellent and reach for another, there isn't another one like it on the plate. bummer.

2009-12-17T10:37:00.000-08:00

an interruption

2009-12-09T05:08:00.001-08:00

"His eternal livingness was interrupted by the experience of a human death, and he shares the eternal life of God through triumph over death." - Richard Bauckham

once upon a time

2009-12-06T10:19:00.001-08:00

long, long ago in a land not so far away, i loved to write.

a reminder

2009-11-20T09:15:00.001-08:00

be who you is. cause if you aint who you is, you is who you aint. ~ good ole brennan

season

2009-11-17T16:44:00.001-08:00

i'm not so sure i like this season...

sunset

2009-11-15T19:39:00.001-08:00

it was a beautiful day to go home...

ache

2009-11-11T19:51:00.000-08:00

my fingers ache for a piano. oh that the day would come...

2009-11-07T17:06:00.000-08:00

we're famous

2009-11-07T17:03:00.001-08:00

"We have become famous for what we oppose, rather than who we are for." - David Kinnaman, unChristian

our task

2009-11-07T17:01:00.000-08:00

"Our task is to be effective agents of spiritual transformation in people's lives, whatever that may cost in time, comfort or image." - David Kinnaman, unChristian

same time

2009-10-26T10:44:00.001-07:00

the world seems smaller and bigger all at the same time...

stone

2009-10-23T10:14:00.000-07:00

2009-10-21T20:01:00.001-07:00

four years is a long time

feels icky

2009-10-15T10:48:00.001-07:00

you know it's bad when you don't want coffee and you do want canned chicken noodle soup.

yup

2009-10-10T11:14:00.001-07:00

80% in 5 years. somehow not surprising.

wisdom from the backseat

2009-09-29T15:20:00.001-07:00

"Everybody makes mistakes." - Elsa, age 8

strength

2009-09-25T12:04:00.001-07:00

i anticipated that this would be hard...

Father, your strength in my weakness.

crazy

2009-09-23T14:48:00.001-07:00

this day's been crazy, but everything's happened on schedule.

in circles

2009-09-15T19:24:00.000-07:00

I’m running in circles, jumping over hurdles working on a song to sing

oh my gosh

2009-09-15T19:22:00.001-07:00

i haven't played Bubble Shooter in over two months.

my boy

2009-09-07T06:05:00.000-07:00

h

2009-09-03T14:06:00.000-07:00

staff meeting

2009-09-02T09:20:00.000-07:00

"I'm not a normal person." - Angel

broken

2009-08-29T20:08:00.000-07:00

2009-08-28T15:36:00.001-07:00

shalom.

really?

2009-08-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

sometimes ya' just gotta scratch your head.

different now

2009-07-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

"The girl she was in New England is different now and dead"

2009-06-27T11:48:00.000-07:00

no, but i'm here

2009-06-22T20:46:00.000-07:00

A woman came to the door of the church today and rang the doorbell. When I answered the door, she asked if there were any pastors available. I sort of smiled knowing our senior pastor was headed out of town, the youth guy was away doing an internship miles from there and even our small group coordinator was leaving on a trip. So, that kind of leaves me...but I'm not really a pastor. So, I said, "Well, no we don't have a pastor here right now, but I'm here. Can I help you with something?"

For that moment I longed to be able to say, "Well, I'm one." But, I can't. And, there is so much tied up in that little word. So much theology. So many stereotypes. So many opinions and ideas. So much so that I often choose to dismiss its importance. Usually I don't much care what they call me, just let me keep doing what I love...until that moment that it mattered. In that moment my response seemed to be missing the same credibility that would be lacking if they asked for a doctor on a plane, and a someone else stood up and said, "No, but I'm here."

And, honestly, I still don't much care...until another moment comes and a woman stands in front of me and says "Are there any pastors available?" And, I have to say, "No, but I'm here..."

one of today's smiles

2009-06-22T14:54:00.000-07:00

lemonade $0.25

2009-06-18T19:34:00.000-07:00

monday's meeting

2009-06-17T10:29:00.001-07:00

"I'm a recovering worshiper." - Griff

a new road...

2009-06-14T14:23:00.000-07:00

"sometimes to get anywhere you just gotta take a leap. either to land where you were looking or just to get to some new road." - mike

words from wonder at willow

2009-06-12T19:25:00.000-07:00

"My task as an artist is to say clearly what others have always felt vaguely." - Ian Morgan Cron

"I want to be among the easily impressed." - Stan Endicott

"The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. The opposite of art is not ugliness, it's indifference. The opposite of faith is not heresy, it's indifference. And the opposite of life is not death, it's indifference." - Elie Wiesel

"Ministry is not about job security; it's about making the invisible visible." - Phil Vischer

"We're a small church of 1000 members." - woman in a session

"Baby, you're more than this!" - Darlene Zschech

"All art is speaking in tongues." - ? (Ian Morgan Cron repeated it, but I missed the reference. sorry!)

"Everything we need is already here." - Ian Morgan Cron

"The universe is crammed with God." - Elisabeth Barrett Browning

"I didn't know when I became a Christian if all my artistic juices could be used in the church." - Ephram Smith

"Your brokenness is your very best intersection with Jesus." - Nancy Ortberg

"God's so big and the song is so small." - Josh Wilson

"We're in the life transformation business." - Nancy Beach

"We are arrested by God's presence." - Ian Morgan Cron

"The broken will become the beloved." - Ephram Smith

"All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well." - Julian Norwich

favorite thing number twenty-three

2009-06-01T15:55:00.001-07:00

perhaps one of the most beautiful things i have seen in a while is also one of my favorites.

a repentant sinner/saint with posture, facial expression and word humbly coming before the Triune God.

like a sheep

2009-05-30T13:45:00.001-07:00

I long for your salvation, O LORD, and your law is my delight. Let me live that I may praise you, and may your laws sustain me. I have strayed like a lost sheep. Seek your servant, for I have not forgotten your commands. -Psalm 119:174-176

seeking

2009-05-30T09:06:00.001-07:00

"the eyes that seek often have just as many important insights as those that have already found" - mike

disappear

2009-05-27T20:41:00.000-07:00

"can we disappear?"

wanting more

2009-05-24T21:34:00.000-07:00

"My phone is dieing again. I keep trying to wean it off battery, but it just keeps wanting more." -Laura

small enough

2009-05-18T16:22:00.000-07:00

i know the world is getting smaller, but sometimes it doesn't seem quite small enough...

just thinking...

2009-05-16T20:21:00.000-07:00

it's like looking at a pebble for a very long time and then realizing it wasn't a pebble at all...

walking a tightrope

2009-05-15T17:44:00.000-07:00

bee on a baby bottle brush bush

2009-05-15T15:48:00.000-07:00

after the rain

2009-05-13T19:30:00.000-07:00

alone

2009-05-13T19:19:00.000-07:00

florida orange

2009-05-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

here's lookin' at you, kid

2009-05-12T20:24:00.000-07:00

dear friend

2009-05-12T20:23:00.000-07:00

stood still

2009-05-05T12:19:00.000-07:00

the sounds of thunder rumbled through the skies. the first drop of rain found my cheek, the second my arm, and the third my nose. clouds were closing in, and there i stood.

drip... drip...

i looked down to see specks of moisture now painting the sidewalk. and, still i stood there.

drip. drip. drop. drip. drip. drop.

picking up intensity, the precipitation continued to fall. my jeans were soaked. they were holding in the water as if they didn't ever want to let it go. my shirt pushed the rain away at first and then began to absorb it. and still, i stood there.

drip, drip, drop. drip, drip, drop.

as the rain cloaked me in water my mind wandered. there was a freshness. it was as if the spring rain came and removed all of the dirt and grime that had built up within me during the past months. and i stood still.

drip, drop. drip, drop. drip, drop.

completely drenched. completely clean. standing completely still.

favorite thing number twenty-two

2009-05-05T11:54:00.001-07:00

the smell of the rain during a spring thunderstorm

clearly...

2009-05-03T11:39:00.000-07:00

i have everything i need for life and godliness.

hollow

2009-05-01T11:57:00.001-07:00

words are hollow, but actions reveal truth

the years go by, but it is still true

2009-04-30T10:10:00.000-07:00

"Why me? Why this privileged position?" -me

clay's right

2009-04-28T18:05:00.000-07:00

looking for the "less stupider" version

duh comes to mind

2009-04-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

"It's as if He really does guide our steps" - Laura

tired. very tired.

2009-04-26T13:40:00.000-07:00

"When we are tired, we are attacked by ideas we conquered long ago." - Nietzsche

i guess we can find truth in unexpected places...

birthdays and such

2009-04-25T21:11:00.000-07:00

"I'm not going to invite you to my birthday party." - michelle

footsteps

2009-04-25T20:10:00.000-07:00

how did you find me here?

nothing

2009-04-25T14:37:00.000-07:00

Nothing in my hand I bring,
simply to the cross I cling;
naked, come to thee for dress;
helpless, look to thee for grace;
foul, I to the fountain fly;
wash me, Savior, or I die.

anticipation

2009-04-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

And at the end of my days
When your throne fills my view
I will sing of Your mercies anew

- Mark Altrogge & Bob Kauflin

one of those days

2009-04-23T08:59:00.000-07:00

there are days when we don't ask those questions.

miss fix-it

2009-04-21T19:17:00.000-07:00

“All of life’s problems can be solved with two things—duct tape and WD40. If it moves and it shouldn’t, you need duct tape. And if it doesn’t move and it should, you need WD40.”—Unknown (through the mouth of my mother)

no progress here

2009-04-21T16:56:00.000-07:00

"We been doing pretty good. We might just as well keep doing it like we have been."

puffy cloud

2009-04-20T08:28:00.000-07:00

some days i wish i had a great big puffy cloud that i could escape in.

no use

2009-04-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

'I could tell you my adventures — beginning from this morning,' said Alice a little timidly: 'but it's no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.'

wisdom for children

2009-04-18T20:19:00.000-07:00

Oh that I were
Where I would be,
Then would I be
Where I am not;
But where I am
There I must be,
And where I would be
I cannot.

fun with magnetic poetry

2009-04-18T10:03:00.001-07:00

"Mary, where are we going to put the drunk?" - Innocent Elsa

wandering

2009-04-18T10:02:00.000-07:00

"Not all who wander are lost." - J.R.R. Tolkien

sun on my back

2009-04-18T08:43:00.000-07:00

i don't know if 70 has ever felt so good...

what it is

2009-04-17T06:51:00.000-07:00

annoying but not debilitating

shocked and inspired

2009-04-16T21:32:00.000-07:00

"If it all gets too much and they lock me up, I want a great big strait-jacket with spots on it. A pink one... and a big zip on the back so I can escape," said Susan Boyle.

a little cheer

2009-04-14T14:23:00.000-07:00

did winter finally end?

2009-04-14T10:10:00.000-07:00

is it really spring today/ thawing out my heart/ promising the sun and a brand new start/is it really gonna rain/ giving us new life/ making everything alright/ is it really spring today sweet solace/ no one even knows i’m here/ if i hide inside these blankets, could i disappear/ ah angels, they whisper in my ear “better days are almost here”

-katy kinard

dieing

2009-04-14T10:07:00.000-07:00

"Everything must die to rise again."

maybe?

2009-04-14T10:03:00.000-07:00

"Is there an upgrade that I missed?" - Stephanie referring to herself

irreplaceable words

2009-04-13T12:02:00.001-07:00

"pictures may be worth a thousand words, but there's still something irreplaceable about the words themselves" - mike (another word-lover)

favorite thing number twenty-one

2009-04-12T09:32:00.000-07:00

Easter!! :D

longing

2009-04-11T15:41:00.000-07:00

my ears long for music. my heart longs for Christ.

sitting outside starbucks

2009-04-11T11:21:00.000-07:00

"Wow! Those are cool pens!" says girl while ogling my pens.
"What makes them cool?" says puzzled boy as he tries to understand her fascination.

these wonders i confess

2009-04-10T09:22:00.002-07:00

Upon the cross of Jesus mine eyes at times can see
The very dying form of One who suffered there for me.
And from my smitten heart, with tears, these wonders i confess
The wonder of His glorious love, and my unworthiness.

- Elizabeth C. Clephane

tonight

2009-04-09T19:38:00.000-07:00

is the moon as big and beautiful there as it is here?

whoa.

2009-04-08T20:43:00.000-07:00

i'm not a fan of this me. she hasn't been around in eight or nine months, and i can't say i've missed her.