Why I Run

I used to hate running – especially outside. Looking back, I have no idea why. I. was. wrong. It doesn’t get much better than getting lost in a neighborhood and running until you weave your way out. Oh the attitude adjustments the Lord can give me while I run!

Saturday I was a little down in the dumps, so I laced up my shoes and took off. As I ran, the Lord seemed to increase my awareness that I was not truly trusting Him and His plan for my life. (I feel like this is a lesson I never quite learn.) While running, I heard a song playing in the distance. As I tried to figure out which house it was, I finally realized it was my phone in my hand. Apparently, using my oh-so-tech-savvy iphone skills, I opened Pandora and my phone was playing music. The song was Meredith Andrews’s “Treasure,” and the lyrics rang loud and clear: “My treasure is you, there is no other; My treasure is you, more then gold; Heaven and Earth they have lost their luster; You alone are the treasure that I hold."

Well that truth was enough to sit me down right there. (Thankfully, I was running a trail at this point, so I didn’t have to sit on the sidewalk in someone’s front yard!) Sitting there I realized that it had been exactly one year since I stepped off a plane at RDU to visit Raleigh, NC for the first time, knowing I’d be moving there a few months later. On that day, I remember being overcome with an emotional love for the Lord. And here, one year later, I have a much deeper mental love for the Lord. Yet, I’ve lost some of the feelings. I realize that my relationship with God isn’t based on feelings, but I long to love Him in such a deeply emotional way again. And I think I need to start by reminding myself of how worthy of trust and affection He is.

So as I sat there in the dirt and looked out over an empty, grassy area, I saw two red birds chasing one another. It took me back to my last dentist visit when I had to have a cavity filled. (Yes, I just admitted that to the world.) I was honestly scared (I’m a baby), and I prayed for courage and trust as I sat in the dentist chair. I looked out the big picture window in front of me and saw red birds chasing each other outside in the woods. God reminded me that He takes care of the sparrows. And I am worth more than many sparrows! (Matthew 10:31)

Last Saturday, once again I needed to be reminded that if God cares for the birds of the air, who do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and the lilies of the field who do not labor or spin, how much more does He care for me!? (Matthew 6:25-34) God is so faithful to tell me the same things over and over and over...

I run for many reasons. It’s good for my health, it’s a great opportunity to spend time with my dad, it increases endorphins, etc. But I think what I seem to find most valuable is the alone time I spend with God, not trying to “do” anything, but just listening. So if you asked me why I run, I might just tell you it’s because I like it. But in my heart I know I need it - because I desperately need Jesus, who runs alongside me, loving me every step of the way. He is worthy of our trust.

Running the race,
Jaye

Sorry for the “stream of consciousness.” Hopefully you were able to follow.

New Territory

I named this blog “The Land That I Will Show You” based on Gen. 12:1-3, which the Lord used to lead me to Raleigh. Now that I stop to reflect on the last few months, God has worked in my life in a similar pattern to Abraham’s once again – He shows me the new land little by little as I go.

Oh boy, how my life has changed since my last blog! When I last wrote, I was a part-time teacher and a full-time student at SEBTS. Long story short(er), I am now I full-time AND a part-time teacher, plus a part-time student. Here’s what happened. A third grade teacher decided not to return from maternity leave, and I was asked to take over her class (in addition to the after school music stuff I was already doing.) Well that seemed like an impossible task and not at all in line with what I came here to do (because it would mean dropping some seminary classes.) However, through guidance through scripture and godly counsel, God led me to accept.

Colossians 3 was the scripture God used primarily. Through Paul’s words, I felt God telling me that I was to put on compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. (v. 12) That I was going to learn to put on love. (v. 14) That I was to let the word of Christ dwell in me richly (v.15) and work heartily, serving the Lord Christ (v. 23). I asked God a lot of questions, and put forth a lot of “what ifs” and “what abouts.” For example, “Is it possible to teach 3^rd grade and chorus without losing my mind and/or my witness?!?” Verse 16 summed up my situation pretty well. (Disclaimer: Please forgive my hermeneutics. I am in that class right now, and I realize that Paul was speaking to the Colossians. I am not the original audience, so I would never preach that this is what this passage is saying. However, I’m just explaining the application of these scriptures in my life that God showed me.) “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” I felt like God told me to teach and sing, all the while being thankful that He had answered my prayers.

I had just recently begun to pray for more opportunities to be a witness in my workplace. I missed working full-time and having full-time relationships with colleagues and students. Since I had been praying for that, I could see this job offer as a potential answer to that prayer. It’s also neat to think about how God uses the seemingly insignificant things at the time they occur to accomplish His purpose later. For instance, last spring I had to proctor during SAT testing. I was frustrated that I had to do that rather than teach my usual music classes. I was placed in a 3^rd grade room, and at the end of the two weeks, the experience really confirmed my love for 3^rd graders. I was a little jealous of the relationship that classroom teacher had with her students because, as a music teacher, I would never have such deep relationships with students I only saw once a week. What a blessing to have a friend remind me of those things as I prayed about this decision!

So…after reading Colossians 3:1-17, I remember telling God, “Ok, I guess this is what you’re leading me to do…but are you serious?!?! I can’t do that… it doesn’t make sense with why I came to seminary… I’ll be worthless because I’ll be so tired… I’ll never get to hang out with friends… (excuse upon excuse.)” So then I read v. 18, “Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.” As a single woman, the only husband I submit myself to is the Lord (Isaiah 54:5). So after one more final Word of instruction, I told God, “Yes.” And with the blessings He has poured out, I will continue saying “yes” to Him. He is ever faithful, always knowing what is best. Father, help me to obey. Your plan is SO worth it.

Just reflecting on that this morning, and I wanted to share.

“Living the dream,”
Jaye

My Favorite Gift

My mom always asks us to make a Christmas list. This year, I really wanted an iphone, and I didn’t care much about anything else on my list. And yesterday morning, my Christmas dreams came true! On the way to church with my family, my mother dubbed me the “most excited about a gift,” which is an unofficial title I’ve never before been awarded! So needless to say, the iphone is a favorite. But even with the months of anticipation leading up to the unwrapping of my iphone, another gift has given it a run for its money.

My grandmother made each of us grandchildren a quilt this year. Each is different, customized to suit each recipient. My quilt is, as expected, fancy and feminine, so I immediately knew my grandmother had hit the nail on the head. But a closer look revealed just how amazingly appropriate for me is the quilt my grandmama so carefully crafted. For each quilt, my grandmother selected Bible verses especially intended for each of us, and on mine is monogrammed Colossians 1:9-12.

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.

To Grandmama’s joyful surprise, these are a few of the verses God laid on my heart to commit to memory this semester. Grandmama later told me that she’s been praying these verses for my cousins and me daily for years. Once again, I feel that the favor God has bestowed on my life is a direct result of the faithful prayers and faithful lives of my grandparents.

This very special present reminds me of what I have come to realize is the greatest gift (other than Jesus, of course) that I enjoy year after year. It’s the gift of a loving, godly family (on both my dad's and my mom's sides), who celebrates the birth of Christ together. Through silly Christmas games where we use an acrostic to describe the attributes of God, or through homemade costumes and acting out the nativity, or even singing and acting out “The 12 Days of Christmas”—my family loves God and loves each other. I am beyond blessed to be a Herrod.

How funny is it that I share a name with some of the most evil men in history (granted, someone apparently altered the spelling by adding an “r” at some point), yet my family heritage is so godly! What a picture of redemption! I am honored to bear the name “Herrod”—because in that name, I am reminded of Gen. 50:20. What is intended for evil, God intends for good. Surely he has shown love to our family to the thousandth generation!

Blessed,

Jaye

PS - By the way, I flew a plane today! (More to come...)

My grandparents (Dad's side)

(Don't have a picture from Mom's side)

My quilt

A "Brief" Recap

Wow. I stink at blogging. I think my perfectionist tendencies make blogging especially difficult (plus my tendency to ramble and write a very long blog.) Anyway, I’m going to attempt to give a brief description of my first semester of seminary. Judging from the fact that I have not written a single blog since the night before I started seminary, I believe the statement, “Seminary life is busy,” goes without saying.

September—a month of adjustment. I’ve read more pages than I’ve ever read and watched more football than I’ve ever watched! Rather than talking about all the reading, let’s talk about all the football. My roommate and I were so excited to find friends who had cable TV and who also loved SEC football! Saturdays were spent watching intramural football games in the morning and college football in the afternoons and evenings. (I had to make sure I didn’t invest too much of my life in reading!) Our friends pull for various teams, so I also had to expand my sugar cookie decorating skills to ensure that everyone’s teams were represented. Aimee (my roommate) and I have been very blessed by our friendships at The Rose (the house where we spend our Saturdays), and we are thankful for the Lord’s provision of a “typical” Southern schedule during football season.

Football cookies for Auburn, Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, and Michigan State.

October—a trip home and the most beautiful fall I’ve ever witnessed. Early October consisted of another half marathon with my dad and a quick trip to Mobile to visit everyone I so desperately miss (especially Saraland Elementary and North Mobile.) Later in the month, I went to the North Carolina State Fair, which knocks the socks off of anything in Alabama! What a fun night we had eating fair food, riding rides, and playing with friends!

At the Fair

November—a month of celebrations and surprises. The month commenced with a surprise party for one of my good friends, where we played dodgeball in a completely dark house for a couple of hours. It was a much needed break from responsibility for a night. A few days later, we dressed up and celebrated my birthday at The Melting Pot.

Birthday folks

The next week my best friend and former roommate came for a visit, and the month ended with a Thanksgiving surprise for my family. (My roommate and I led our families to believe that we would not be home for Thanksgiving, and I’ll never forget the expression on my mother’s face when she saw me sitting on the couch that afternoon!) It was a wonderful trip home, and I’m so thankful for a loving family and peaceful home.

When Kristin Came to Visit

December—fast-paced, yet long and drawn out. Time is strange like that. At the beginning of the month, we had another party, which has become a monthly tradition. We had about 50 people and more tortillas and taco shells than I’ve ever seen outside of the grocery store! Then studying for finals took over my life. Hours upon hours were devoted to reading and memorizing, but I think it paid off. (We’ll see if I still feel that way once grades are posted.) One Sunday afternoon, five of us girls sang Christmas carols at a nursing home and had a blast! I’m thankful for an opportunity that reminded me to be grateful I’m able to be “home for the holidays.” Saturday I got a call from my friend who will soon be serving in South Asia, and she asked me to “babysit” her piano for 2 years. Woo hoo!!! And yesterday I arrived in Prattville to be with my family!

So that’s basically a list of “stuff” that has happened in my life over the last few months. For whatever reason, I feel older. Sometimes, it’s a bad feeling (like the time I got dizzy from walking too quickly through the periodicals in the SEBTS library or as I realize that more and more of my clothes just don’t fit), but most of the time, it’s a great feeling. The Lord has been patiently shaping me into the Proverbs 31 woman I so deeply desire to be, and I am hopeful that one day I’ll be able to say that my life resembles hers. I’m stubborn, and I resist the Potter’s hand entirely too often, but He is faithful. What a gracious gift that He never gives up on us! I pray that as time continues, I will submit. Because so far – the journey has been worth it.

Blessings,

Jaye

An Evening of Transition

Tonight I sit in a living room with no furniture on which to sit, except for a butterfly chair from my old dorm room stuff. This afternoon the old couches were moved out to clear the way for new ones coming tomorrow. I’m sure I make quite a picture. But the more I’ve thought about it, the more I find this night of transition between furniture to be quite appropriate.

In just a little over a month in Raleigh, I’ve experienced quite a bit. Lilly’s Pizza (a hole-in-the-wall joint that has an amazing lunch special), North Carolina-style BBQ (which I don’t really recommend), indoctrinating 2 friends into making monthly sugar cookies (see pics below), a Durham Bulls game (WAY fun!), weekly trips to Harris Teeter (the highlight of my week), a weekend get-away to Myrtle Beach, and even hosting a party for 35 of my closest friends! (We seriously had about that many people over on Sunday night.) And I’ll tell you what – the end of my “summer” (even though I’ve been teaching, since my school is year-round), has been wonderful.

But as fun as it’s all been, these things aren’t why I moved. And tomorrow is the first day of living out my real purpose in moving to North Carolina. Tomorrow I “matriculate.”

ma·tric·u·late/məˈtrikyəˌlāt/
Verb: Be enrolled at a college or university.

Tomorrow I begin new student orientation at Southeastern. I admit to being more than a little nervous, but rather than list the reasons, I am choosing to remind myself of God’s faithfulness.

In Acts 18:24-28, Apollos, who “had been instructed in the way of the Lord” was taught “the way of God more accurately” by Priscilla and Aquila. Later “he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.” I am encouraged in my own life because I have been taught the truths of scripture from the day I was born, and tomorrow begins a process of learning even more accurately. I look forward to the day that I am able to powerfully defend Jesus as the Christ in public as Apollos did. Feel free to pray for me on this journey.

So as I sit in my butterfly chair, I thank the Lord for continuing to bring about change in my life (even though I often resist it.) If there was never a change, there would never be a transition. And we’d miss out on all God desires to teach us in preparation for what’s to come.

Enjoying the Transition,
Jaye

Isaiah 43:19 “Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.”

I Heart Raleigh

So today I joined The Summit Church, North Raleigh campus. It’s a multi-site church that is best explained by checking out the website.

I prayed even before moving to Raleigh that the Lord would lead me to the church where I will best love Him, love the church, and serve my city, and The Summit seems to be in direct answer to that prayer. I am excited to get involved in a church that is so missions-minded.

It was a big decision to join, and the hardest part was knowing that I’d no longer be a member of North Mobile. But one thing I learned in my small group at NoMo this last year is that, according to Jeremiah 29:7, we are to seek the welfare of the city in which we live. So upon moving to Raleigh, I prayed to love the city. Interestingly enough, all of The Summit’s bumper stickers (yes, bumper stickers) bear the slogan: I HEART RALEIGH. I asked the Lord to confirm through scripture where He would have me go, and He gave me that plus a whole bunch of bumper stickers!

Loving the city,

Jaye

Going

In Genesis 12, God tells Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you.” That’s it. Those are the instructions. “Go.” Not “Put this address in your GPS.” Not “Mapquest this intersection.” Not “Get out a road map you’ll never be able to fold correctly again.” Not even “Head north.” Just, “Go.”

Not that I believe I’m some kind of Abraham or anything, but that’s just the kind of message I felt God delivered to me last October. The only thing I felt sure about was that the purpose in all this “going” was to share the gospel. God was so faithful over the next few months to reveal more and more of the plan, piece by piece, as I needed it.

So now I find myself in Raleigh, North Carolina (where the summer weather is awesome!), teaching junior high chorus part-time at an amazing school, reuniting with friends from college, and preparing to begin seminary in August. And now I see another parallel between my life and Abraham’s. I am most certainly blessed. My hope and prayer is that during this part of my journey, I can resemble Abraham – whose faith was credited to him as righteousness (Rom. 4).

Going,
Jaye

Note: Many people have told me to keep in touch and let them know what’s going on, and this is the most convenient and efficient way I can think to do that. This blog thing may or may not pan out in the end, but for now, I’ll give it a shot. What a blessing technology can be when it is used for good rather than evil!