2011

This has been one crazy year. And I’m not talking football. I’m not talking politics. I’m talking about life. This year we saw Japan hit by a record quake (just a memorable one of many), and a record-breaking outbreak of tornadoes. Congressional approval ratings has reached an all-time low, as unemployment reached highs. Our president gave up on doing anything, as did congress and virtually everyone else.

In my life, I baptized more people this year than in my life so far. I prayed with a lot of people in hospitals. I started looking for a house. I knew a dozen women pregnant at the same time, including my sister who gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, Kate, a.k.a. the Wiggle Worm. I also knew more people who passed away this year. My mother’s work was plagued by women losing their husbands. I took part in organizing and speaking at my Dad’s funeral last January.

Those were the most significant events of the year. I had one date (big whoop). I worked a lot, which was mostly enjoyable. My vacations all took me to the same place, my childhood home. Christmas morning was classified by these significant events. The first thing my sister and I opened were called “Memory Bears,” a teddy bear made from Dad’s sweatshirts. We cried. We remembered. Last Christmas time was the last time I saw Dad. A snowy flight home, lack of sleep, the most difficult moment of my life. Doing his funeral helped me move on. Just a few weeks later, my niece was conceived. God was involved directly. Kate gave us something to look forward to and helped us have a future to look to. Though she cannot replace Dad, we love her so much, and this joy helped our hearts not to dwell on the pain.

This year was also classified by a lesson. In February, I heard a sermon on John 15. Jesus said, “I am the vine. You are the branches. He who abides in my will bear much fruit.” What I have been learning this year is that it is not my job to produce fruit. It is not my job to help my church produce fruit. It is not my job to help other people produce fruit. It is my job to stay connected to the vine. Ephesians 2:10 says that if we are created new in Christ Jesus, this will result in good works. Galatians 5 says that if we are filled with the Holy Spirit, He will change us. That’s what God spent a year teaching me. My job is not to do for Him. My job is to build a relationship with Him. The doing will result from my closeness to Him. That's a lesson I continue to learn, to stay close to Him.