Tuesday, December 27, 2005

The Magic is Gone.

Well, Christmas is over. I have resigned myself to that fact and will live my life as normal until next year at this time. Unless it snows. Then I revert back to sparkly-eyed child mode. Be forewarned. I live life with the innocence of a child, which can be dangerous. But it is also beautiful and filled with the magic of existence.

I really just wanted to write to update you guys on my whole knee situation. As of this morning, I am suddenly feeling 90% better walking and sitting. Standing is still awkward and bending is just not a good idea, but I'm excited at how much better I feel today. Maybe it will be more than just a fluke. Maybe I'm getting well!!!

Wednesday, December 21, 2005

Ah, Christmas.

My family and I just went to the Jim Brickman Christmas concert at the Tennessee Theatre. Amazing. There is something truly magical about solo piano, and when it's mixed with Christmas time, I just can't take it. It's too incredible for words.

The Angel Tree is finally done. I'm sad to see it go. It was such an incredible thing to see faces light up at the sight of presents that they thought they wouldn't have. When I led one lady to the room where her children's gifts were, she said, "There must be a mistake. My kids only asked for a couple of things." When I said that those were indeed her presents, tears came to her eyes. She dropped her purse and hugged me so tightly. She said that she couldn't thank us enough, and that Christmas was going to be different now for her family. She seriously hugged me at least five times before she left. Wow. Talk about the most amazing Christmas present ever. Those serving and those served are equally transformed by the power of God's love. Thanks to all of you that embody that truth throughout the year.

Merry Christmas, everybody!

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

My 5 Year Goals.

Tonight at small group, we are supposed to share our five year goals. Here's what I have so far. Any more ideas?

In Five Years (Christmas 2010), I hope to:

1. ... have worked in an orphanage overseas.
2. ... be as happy as I am now.
3. ... be actively serving in a ministry capacity without closing myself off to the world around me.
4. ... have filled up my passport before it expired (2009).
5. ... be living simply, but with enough money to buy gifts for my friends, family, and those who cannot afford them.
6. ... have someone to share the magic of Christmas with.
7. ... have real relationships with people that are very different from me.
8. ... be physically healthy.
9. ... know that God used me to make a difference in the world.
10. ... be wiser, kinder, gentler, and more in love with Jesus and His creation.

Friday, December 9, 2005

Greenwood.

Greenwood

Top 10 Unsigned Bands/Artists

....according to crapfilter.net

10. Keyke
9. Kill Hands
8. And We Danced
7. Straitlaced
6. bang bang Beautiful
5. Holler Wild Rose!
4. Harris
3. Subliminal Orphans
2. Greenwood
1. Miss Argentina

Okay, I'm not actually listening to this yet because my sister (ahem) ordered them and has not yet sent me mine. If she is waiting until Christmas to give me this CD, she is just mean. Anyway, I had to give my boys their props. I love you guys and I can't wait to hear the CD! Congratulations on being the #2 unsigned band!

Wednesday, December 7, 2005

Snow.

I wish it would snow here. I always have a new appreciation for the whole "white as snow" metaphor when snow comes. The ugliest, tackiest things become beautiful because they are covered with the beauty of snow. There is no inherent beauty in these things. They cannot make themselves beautiful. But when snow falls, we see its beauty through these things. They provide the shape, the snow provides the beauty.

We provide the shape. God provides the beauty. We have no inherent good or beauty in ourselves, but because of God's grace and love, we are covered. And we become beautiful.

Sorry to get all wordy and mushy on you guys. It's just that all you people lucky enough to be up North were talking about snow and it started me thinking about why I love it so much.

Monday, December 5, 2005

November Update

November Update

Rachel Elizabeth Smith
1432 Lovell Road • Knoxville, Tennessee 37932
Phone (865) 806-3802
E-Mail rachel@providencechurch.com
Dearest Friends and Family,

God’s provisions never cease to astound me! My heartfelt thanks extend to all who pray for and support this ministry.

This month I have learned many lessons in the power of prayer. As I read over the prayer requests I put before you in my last letter, I was surprised by how far we have come in so short a time. For example, I asked you to pray for an opportunity to minister in a local prison. We have received a literal onslaught of opportunities for service both there and in other correctional facilities nearby. I truly believe that God has allowed us to partner with Him “to preach good news to the poor… bind up the brokenhearted… proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1).

We have also begun to mobilize a partnership between members of our church and a local homeless ministry.[1] We were amazed when over 30 people showed up at the interest meeting, ready and eager to serve Knoxville’s “least of these” (Matthew 25:31-46).

Currently I am in the middle of our Angel Tree project, which I am coordinating through two different agencies.[2] God has already done more than we could “ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:30), and I am eager to tell you in my next letter about His movement through this special Christmas program.

God is teaching me so much and giving me a vast array of opportunities to serve Him through this position. For the last three weeks, I have been privileged to help lead worship with our high-school ministry. Music has been immeasurably important to me thus far and I am glad to welcome it back into my life. I was also blessed to be able to share a bit of my heart with a women’s group at a local church. I was encouraged by the hospitality and openness of the women and humbled that God was able to use me when I felt I had nothing to say.

Here are a few ways that I ask for your prayers:
1) Please pray that God will continue to provide sponsors for the children in Knoxville and around the world who do not have the means to celebrate Christmas with gifts, food, and a nurturing home environment.
2) Christmas can bring stress and excessive demands on one’s time along with a myriad of opportunities to help people. Please pray for wisdom as we decide where to put our time, energy, and money as individuals and as a church body.
3) I wish I could say that fundraising is no longer a prayer request, but it is. As of today, I have raised less than one third of my salary. Please continue to pray that God will provide sponsors to partner with me in this ministry.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! If you wish to make a tax deductible contribution to help this ministry continue, please make your check payable to Providence Church with “for Rachel Smith” written in the memo line, and send it to the address above. Please include a note with your name and the amount and frequency of your gift (one time, monthly, etc.) in order to help me keep track of my fundraising.

Feel free to write, call, or e-mail me anytime! I would love to hear from you.

Love in Christ,

Rachel Elizabeth Smith
Romans 8:28

"Christianity has all too often meant withdrawal and the unwillingness to share the common suffering of humankind. But the world has rightly risen in protest against such piety.... The care of another - even material, bodily care - is spiritual in essence. Bread for myself is a material question; bread for my neighbor is a spiritual one." ~Jacques Maritain

[1] Knox Area Rescue Ministries (http://www.karm.org)
[2] Helen Ross McNabb (http://www.mcnabbcenter.org) and Prison Fellowship (http://www.prisonfellowship.org)

November Update

November Update

Rachel Elizabeth Smith
1432 Lovell Road • Knoxville, Tennessee 37932
Phone (865) 806-3802
E-Mail rachel@providencechurch.com
Dearest Friends and Family,

God’s provisions never cease to astound me! My heartfelt thanks extend to all who pray for and support this ministry.

This month I have learned many lessons in the power of prayer. As I read over the prayer requests I put before you in my last letter, I was surprised by how far we have come in so short a time. For example, I asked you to pray for an opportunity to minister in a local prison. We have received a literal onslaught of opportunities for service both there and in other correctional facilities nearby. I truly believe that God has allowed us to partner with Him “to preach good news to the poor… bind up the brokenhearted… proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” (Isaiah 61:1).

We have also begun to mobilize a partnership between members of our church and a local homeless ministry.[1] We were amazed when over 30 people showed up at the interest meeting, ready and eager to serve Knoxville’s “least of these” (Matthew 25:31-46).

Currently I am in the middle of our Angel Tree project, which I am coordinating through two different agencies.[2] God has already done more than we could “ask or imagine” (Ephesians 3:30), and I am eager to tell you in my next letter about His movement through this special Christmas program.

God is teaching me so much and giving me a vast array of opportunities to serve Him through this position. For the last three weeks, I have been privileged to help lead worship with our high-school ministry. Music has been immeasurably important to me thus far and I am glad to welcome it back into my life. I was also blessed to be able to share a bit of my heart with a women’s group at a local church. I was encouraged by the hospitality and openness of the women and humbled that God was able to use me when I felt I had nothing to say.

Here are a few ways that I ask for your prayers:
1) Please pray that God will continue to provide sponsors for the children in Knoxville and around the world who do not have the means to celebrate Christmas with gifts, food, and a nurturing home environment.
2) Christmas can bring stress and excessive demands on one’s time along with a myriad of opportunities to help people. Please pray for wisdom as we decide where to put our time, energy, and money as individuals and as a church body.
3) I wish I could say that fundraising is no longer a prayer request, but it is. As of today, I have raised less than one third of my salary. Please continue to pray that God will provide sponsors to partner with me in this ministry.

Thank you so much for your prayers and support! If you wish to make a tax deductible contribution to help this ministry continue, please make your check payable to Providence Church with “for Rachel Smith” written in the memo line, and send it to the address above. Please include a note with your name and the amount and frequency of your gift (one time, monthly, etc.) in order to help me keep track of my fundraising.

Feel free to write, call, or e-mail me anytime! I would love to hear from you.

Love in Christ,

Rachel Elizabeth Smith
Romans 8:28

"Christianity has all too often meant withdrawal and the unwillingness to share the common suffering of humankind. But the world has rightly risen in protest against such piety.... The care of another - even material, bodily care - is spiritual in essence. Bread for myself is a material question; bread for my neighbor is a spiritual one." ~Jacques Maritain

[1] Knox Area Rescue Ministries (http://www.karm.org)
[2] Helen Ross McNabb (http://www.mcnabbcenter.org) and Prison Fellowship (http://www.prisonfellowship.org)

Sunday, December 4, 2005

4 December 2005

Today has been pretty strange so far. I say that not because anything particularly strange happened, but because I've felt "off" in my spirit all day.

I got to church super early this morning to act in Kidstuf, our gigantic kids production that we do in between the two services. I played the poor widow in the Bible that gave the last two coins that she had. I joked that they just wanted me because of my cane. (Oh yeah. For those of you who don't know, I've been downgraded from crutches to a cane.) It was fun, though.

Anyway, after that I rushed to the Angel Tree to answer people's questions and put new kids on the tree. It was pretty hectic and confusing, and I ended up not even making it into the service! It was a really weird thing to be at church in time for both services and not even have the opportunity to go to one. I actually cried once I was out in my car. I think I was mostly just stressed, but I didn't realize how much I love being a part of our service until I missed it today.

Tonight I'm singing for our small group fellowship. I should probably be picking out songs right now instead of typing this...

Friday, December 2, 2005

2 December 2005

I've been working for almost two non-stop weeks on Angel Tree stuff, and I'm still not done! But I absolutely love it. Tonight I called the parents and/or guardians of the children being sponsored through Prison Fellowship. They were so kind and grateful (for the most part... one lady did kinda bite my head off when I mentioned her incarcerated husband's name). Many of them said they weren't expecting to be sponsored this year and couldn't thank me enough. Do I have the greatest job ever? I think I do. By the way, if you want to sponsor a child or a family through either Prison Fellowship or Helen Ross McNabb, contact me as soon as possible! There is so much need still out there.

Also yesterday, I got to go to a Compassion Coalition meeting about ending chronic homelessness in Knoxville. It was both enlightening and encouraging to see what is happening here and around the world to eradicate systemic injustice. I can't wait to be a part of the life changing movements that are just beginning to come into full swing.