Our friend Zach (whose wedding Jake is the Best Man in tomorrow!!!) has a tradition of taking black and white photos on his real film camera when we go to camp with InterVarsity. I always love them and I'd like to share them with you today.

Here are my favorites from two years ago:

And here are my faves from this year:

Photos by Zach Harris.

On Becoming My Father ...

It's happening, and if I'm honest, it probably began at birth. I'm becoming my dad. And I can't complain. Jake catches me acting dad-like all the time.  And on a recent visit with my dad's sister she mentioned it a few times. The signs are:

Socially: Saying hello to people I pass. Asking everyone how their day is doing (grocery bagger, banker, etc.) Asking people lots of questions about their life experiences.
Physically: Running up the stairs, skipping steps just for fun and efficiency. Strong work ethic. Strong coffee drinking. Opening my eyes big for expression. Genetically identical profile.
Emotionally: Keeping true thoughts and feelings private.
Mentally/Compulsively: Noticing when a cup is too close to the edge of the table, general paranoia, noticing unexpected patterns, general obsession over efficiency, perfection and prevention.

Growing up in my dad's house I don't think I noticed how similar we are. I just thought we got along well. Dad and I travelled together a lot, usually to San Francisco to visit our friends. When I was little, dad loved to brush and braid me and my sisters' hair. He took me on a photography trip and let me drive when I needed to rack in some hours for driver's ed. Actually we did a lot of photography together. My mom has always said that she saw their divorce inspire my dad to be around more, and he's said similar things. Clearly I wish it didn't have to start that way, but I'm so thankful for the relationship my dad and I have now. The daddy/daughter bond is really special.

I adore this photo of Jake and my dad. 

It means so much to me that they love each other.

I look like him, think like him, work like him. And that's fine by me.

Where I've Been | The More Camping Edition



I loved this camping trip a lot. We have fun friends and you see such a new side of people when you camp together. Our hike was gorgeous, we were literally climbing waterfalls at times.

The only sour note ... I went to bed the first night and woke up around 5 in the morning (I'm guessing) completely soaked. It was storming, water had seeped in through the bottom of the tent, and I have a cotton sleeping bag!

Most definitely, my favorite moment was swimming in a gorgeous pool after a long, sweaty hike. I felt like a kid again. We threw frisbees at each other and I wore a two-piece for the first time in 5 years. The water felt so refreshing. It's a goal of mine to swim as much as possible this summer and I'm thrilled to see that happening.












PS: I just can't get over it. In the past 2 weeks I've been in southern Indiana, Chicago, and Madison Wisconsin! This weekend will be the Iowa tour. I hope you have a fun weekend! Eat some watermelon and put your toes in the grass.

I've had three distinct moments of calling which directed me to the ministry I work with; all three having taken place on the north side of Chicago, and two out of three on the red line train.

Most recently, my calling was affirmed in God's abundant provision after I wrote this post. I'm reading a book in which the author asserts that ministry is not work; we don't work because God's Spirit is working and we're just going along with it. I can't wait until I get to that point. Right now, things sometimes still feel like work. But after writing about how my own resources and logic were getting me nowhere, I set to do the only thing I could do, pray. Three times a day my alarm went off and I said the same prayer, asking God to release me from the bondage of my own mind. And God responded quickly! In two days, the ball was rolling on half the things I was waiting for.

The Hebrew word for glory means weight.

I immediately felt a sense of glory and weight on myself, in the purest form, when I realized what riches God was lavishing on me. I felt exactly like Simon Peter in the story when Jesus miraculously catches fish for him:

"... they came and filled both boats [with fish] so full that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, 'Go away from me Lord; for I am a sinful man!' For he and his companions were astonished at the catch of fish ..."

Because there's this thing that happens when you encounter the True and Living God. His perfection makes us so aware of our imperfection that all we can do is ask to be made pure. Otherwise it's truly difficult to be in His presence. At least it was for me. The Bible describes it like this:

"The Light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it." John 1:5

Darkness cannot understand light.

Darkness and light cannot coexist. 

Where there is light, there can literally be no darkness.

I sat on the bench at the red line with twenty minutes to kill; I watched sun set and I  felt my shoulders heave downward with it. 

When God is too good to me, the darkness inside of me can only respond by bowing under the weight of glory.

This God of ours is amazing, all things are under His command.

I'm a far way from being converted from my nature's idolatry, but this is an incredible start.

Where I'm Going | Tour Edition



In honor of the first tour I've ever been on, I'm going to post this photo story I took a few weeks ago. It's about the daylong preparation for a show, at least the way we do things. In a few weeks Jake's band is touring, of all places, to Nebraska and Iowa. We're going to spend July 4th with his family there. His band mates always love the acreage his family home is on, and the guns and horses. It's a ton of fun to see pale city kids running wild on the farm. I have no idea whether I'm going to love tour or despise it. Probably a little of both.