It is September, another new month in our new state. It is beautiful here in Maryland! The weather is cool, the grass is vibrant green, the sky is electric blue, and the clouds are cotton white. The sound of the geese heading south for winter is glorious (you wouldn’t believe the huge turds they leave in parking lots… soooooooo grose). Our open windows let the cool, fragrant, September breeze infiltrate our home and our lungs. The changing of the seasons is upon us, and I am grateful.

There is something in me that longs for change. If it doesn’t happen by divine intervention, I seek it out by rearranging furniture, hanging new things on the wall, creating a new schedule for myself, painting, cutting my hair, dying my hair, or simply adding a new pic to my desktop. I do this because I love the freshness of life when change happens, but I have found that the types of change I can manufacture are only satisfying for a moment. I yearn for transformation and restoration. These types of change are God-given through His direction, His creation, and His intervention. Our transformation and restoration will only happen if we are obedient… there are times God speaks change into being, but most of the time he refines us through obedience. True change enhances and increases the intimacy in my relationship with Abba, and tunes me into the frequency of His heart. That is why I love change.

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“Soak me in your laundry and I’ll come out clean,  scrub me and I’ll have a snow-white life. Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,  set these once-broken bones to dancing. Don’t look too close for blemishes,  give me a clean bill of health. God, make a fresh start in me,  shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. Don’t throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home. Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I’ll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. Unbutton my lips, dear God; I’ll let loose with your praise.”

Psalm 51:12 (The Message) 

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Enjoying the September view from our rear windows…

The 2007 University of Oklahoma football season kick-off was an exciting event in the Weaver household. Seeing Stoops and his crew run across the screen in our living room was a sweet touch of home. Hearing the crowd sustain the traditional OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO and punctuate with the U at kick-off brought much glee to our hearts. This is a great time of the year. We are so thrilled that Sooner football will be a part of our lives again on a weekly basis.
 

GOOOOOOD TIMES!!!

Last year Ryland took part in the kick-off but he was only 6 weeks old at the time. He slept through most of the game in ‘06. This year (2007) he stayed with us to watch the game. He added a lot of energy and excitement to the Weaver family Sooner watching traditions. The “Sooner Nation” has officially added a new fan to their numbers. 

The Weaver Men Intensely Watching the Game.
(Note that Ryan is wearing a Billy Sims jersey and Ryland is wearing an Adrian Peterson jersey…
two of the greatest running backs in college football history)

Go Long Dad…

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO… U!!!

The YooHoo 2 Minute Warning Tradition
(The whole thing has gotta be gone by half-time)

Got the keys… lets tell ‘em to start the bus.

The Best View in the House.

The Proud Sooner Fan…

Ryan and I greatly enjoy a good flick… and while we haven’t been to the movies since we’ve lived in Maryland… We do pride ourselves on our extensive home DVD collection. We have noticed lately that there are some classic films from all genres that one or both of us has never seen (although we may have seen clips or even quoted these films). In an attempt to rectify this costly error in our film culture-ization process… we are compiling a list of “MUST-SEE FILMS” that we want to view on ”interactive DuhVuhDuh” in the very near future.

We would greatly appreciate your help in this effort. Please take a moment to review the list below… and then throw out some suggestions and recommendations to ADD to our GROWING LIST of CLASSIC FILMS that we’ve gotta see ASAP:

.: Animal House
.: The Godfather II and III
.: One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
.: Cat On A Hot Tin Roof
.: McLintock
.: The Quiet Man
.: North By Northwest
.: Rear Window
.: A Streetcar Named Desire
.: The Bridge on the River Kwai
.: Red River
.: Casablanca
.: Patton
.: Life of Brian (Monte Python)
.: The Good, The Bad and the Ugly
.: Dead Poets Society
.: Breakfast at Tiffany’s

As you can see we have a pretty well-rounded start… but we still need your help. Please post your thoughts (as a comment) on the films that you think are MISSING from our list.

THANKS!!!

 
1995 Honda Odyssey

Ryan and I have been a one car family for almost 6 months now. We got rid of the Mitsi to eliminate debt. It has been a very enjoyable time in our lives. Having one vehicle has caused us to spend more time together, communicate clearly about our daily plans, and lifted the weight of “the car payment”. However, the time had come for us to get a second car in preparation for Ryan’s increased office hours at the new church building. 

We began praying for God to give us wisdom and the means to purchase a reliable van without going into debt. We had only been praying for 48 hours when Ryan recieved a phone call from Mike Schofield, one of our youth’s parents. In that phone conversation Mike shared that he’d prayed about a price to sell their van for since they’d purchased a new vehicle. The answer Mike received was “give it to the Weavers”. So that is exactly what the Schofield family did.

Ryan and I are extremely thankful for the Schofield family, and completely amazed and thankful for God’s provision. His timing and plan is always perfect. Once again He has proven that His thoughts are not our thoughts… I love His thoughts!

All three of us are enjoying the van. I am glad to have a car with AC and 4 doors again. Ryland likes that his feet aren’t pressed up against the drivers seat. Loading groceries is quite a breeze. Scheduling our days is less complicated. I feel so much safer when Ryan is gone, knowing that I have a mode of transportation. The mom van is great!

Thank You Schofields!

Thank you Abba!

Take a moment to read these thoughts penned by John Eldredge.

We Are Lovers 07/28/2007  The Scriptures employ a wide scale of metaphors to capture the many facets of our relationship with God. If you consider them in a sort of ascending order, there is a noticeable and breathtaking progression. Down near the bottom of the totem pole we are the clay and he is the Potter. Moving up a notch, we are the sheep and he is the Shepherd, which is a little better position on the food chain but hardly flattering; sheep don’t have a reputation as the most graceful and intelligent creatures in the world. Moving upward, we are the servants of the Master, which at least lets us into the house, even if we have to wipe our feet, watch our manners, and not talk too much. Most Christians never get past this point, but the ladder of metaphors is about to make a swift ascent. God also calls us his children and himself our heavenly Father, which brings us into the possibility of real intimacy— love is not one of the things a vase and its craftsman share together, nor does a sheep truly know the heart of the shepherd, though it may enjoy the fruits of his kindness. Still, there is something missing even in the best parent-child relationship. Friendship levels the playing field in a way family never can, at least not until the kids have grown and left the house. Friendship opens a level of communion that a five-year-old doesn’t know with his mother and father. And “friends” are what he calls us. But there is still a higher and deeper level of intimacy and partnership awaiting us at the top of this metaphorical ascent. We are lovers. The courtship that began with a honeymoon in the Garden culminates in the wedding feast of the Lamb. “I will take delight in you,” he says to us, “as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will I rejoice over you,” so that we might say in return, “I am my beloved’s and his desire is for me.” (The Sacred Romance , 96)  From The Ransomed Heart, by John Eldredge, reading 209 Ransomed Heart Ministries www.ransomedheart.com

My thoughts:  

I am captivated by the fact that Christ delights in me and desires me. The word lover melts my heart and causes me to collapse into the reality of who I am in relationship to my lover. Almost instantly when I think of being His lover I am humbled and thankful. BUT… If I am not careful Satan uses those thoughts as an entrance to begin to whisper that I am not worthy or worth it. I know that through grace I have full access to an intimate love relationship with Jesus Christ, and I know that He has made me worthy through my accepting the sacrifice He gave. This is the battle we all face. Do we trust the heart of the one who offers the relationship or the one who whispers arguments against it? 

I know that I need the lover relationship with Him. I yearn for intimate moments with Him. I enjoy Him as my lover. But often I doubt the grace I have been given. I do not believe that within me has been placed the beautiful stamp of the image of God Himself. So I turn to the lie that I am not worthy and revert back to the servant mode, or I wander around like a dumb sheep. 

That is exactly what the devil wants. He wants disabled Christians. He does not want you and I to take full advantage of all Christ offers us. Satan wants to distract us from the role we were created to play in the redemptive story God has written for the world. 

We can not allow the whispers of the prince of darkness to penetrate our hearts and cripple us on our journey with Christ. We must press on. We must pursue the truth, focus on The Lover, and remember the fact that we are in the midst of a battle. We have an enemy and he will do anything to make us satisfied with simply getting a purple heart and going home. 

I will not be satisfied with anything but knowing intimately and deeply the love of Jesus Christ and sharing that love with the broken hearts in this world. The sacrifice of Jesus demands it and His love compels us to do as such. WE ARE LOVERS. 

I highly recommend subscribing to the daily readings of Ransomed Heart Ministries. Check it out at: 

http://www.ransomedheart.com/default.asp?pl=content.asp&n_Content_ID=1

We Weavers have been off the radar for a little while… but I am glad to say we are back and in the sporadic summer routine that is student ministry.

Ryan, Ryland, and I had the awesome opportunity to be a part of the AM/SM Mission trip to Brooklyn, Maryland June 14th-20th. Allen Memorial Student Ministry has begun a longterm partnership with First Baptist Church of Brooklyn (FBCB). FBCB is in a community that is surrounded by some the most densely populated projects in our nation. The people of the Brooklyn community are in need of many things, the most important of which is the love of Christ. Lou Parodiso, FBCB’s pastor, has a great vision to reach those in the community surrounding them through relational and servant evangelism.

FBCB owns two houses that they are planning to use for education and housing. They are also planning to do VBS this coming week for the children in the area. Our Junior High Students helped to paint a fence, landscape, and pass out invites to VBS. Our high school students removed a massive amount of old furnishings and trash from the home that will be used for education. Our HS students also passed out over 200 invites to FBCB’s upcoming VBS. Both our Junior High and High School students had opportunities to meet and pray with some of the people in the Brooklyn Community.

This trip was amazing… Ryan and I both are extemely thankful for the time we got to spend building relationships with our AM/SM students. We are proud of each and every one of our students who worked hard and now carry the vision of what Christ can do through our partnership with FBCB. We are looking forward to our next trip to Brooklyn.

It is our goal to see all of our children follow God’s call to go into all the world, so… we will train them up, while they are young.  

Fun vacay moments… here they are in chronological order:

Our first fun moments happend on our Sunday in CA… We went to Saddleback to do some student ministry recon. After the service we headed up the “PCH” (Highway 1… the Pacific Coast Highway). We went from Laguna Beach to Newport. We had a lot of fun just being together!

The Von Weaver Family Singers… Beltin’ it On the 1


Laguna Beach


It Was Fun Showin’ The Boys My Favorite Beach…

We made it to the Hollywood Walk of Fame and Grauman’s Chinese Theatre on Monday in CA. It was a first for all three of us.

Driving on the 101 to Hollywood

The Boys on Walt Disney’s Star

The Hollywood sign viewed through the typical smog of So Cal.

Sunset BLVD

“The Theatre, The Theatre”

We are almost the real life version of this not-so-great movie. This Weaver Bunch made it to one funeral and three weddings in three weeks. How can this be? Well, let me tell you how it went down.

It seems like years ago that we landed in Ontario, California (5/16). But I am pretty sure it actually happened. It was not easy to enter the home where my Grandma had so graciously hosted many of our family gatherings, and not see her there. However, it was therapeutic to see family I had not seen in over three years. I have missed my cousins, aunts, uncles, and of course my Mom aka Nana, Brother and Sister (Johanna). I had forgotten how wonderful California can be. I am glad that I don’t live there anymore, but I always love visiting. I hope that Ryland will grow up with great memories of California.

The next leg of our trip led us through Vegas and onto KCMo (5/23 where we had to get a rental car to get to our next stopping point, OKC (5/24). We were in OKC so Ryan could fulfill the first of his Best Man duties in the wedding of Aaron and Serena Nickles (5/26). After the wedding we headed to Honey Grove where we spent t our next week with Pops and Lolly (Kevin and Chris Weaver).

We were able to visit those at BBC (5/27). I really enjoyed getting to sing with Kati, Callie, and Chris. That Sunday afternoon Ryan officiated and I sang in the wedding of Johnny and Windy Whitehead (5/27). It was awesome to be a part of their wedding. We had prayed for their marriage for a couple of years.

The next weekend Ryan was the Best-Man in his cousin Adams Wedding(6/2). It was a beautiful day that reflected the personalities of both Adam and Lori. We flew home that Sunday(6/3). One of our students Micah Melton drove in the rain from Salisbury to pick us up at BWI. For that we are extremely thankful. 

It is great to be home… no I mean it is GRRRReat!!! We really enjoyed seeing family, but next year I think we’ll take a vacation (hehehehehe).

This coming Saturday (6/9) I will be singing in the fourth wedding. This officially makes us the “real life version” of Four Weddings and a Funeral. Yes, I know it’s a little crazy, but it’s a great honor to be a part of the weddings of those we love.  

*Thanks to all of you who were patient with our schedule. We would have liked to have spent more time with each of you. If you can find the time we would love for you to come see us… and the many attractions the Eastern shore has to offer.
 
 
 

My Grandma, Emma Delilah Roff, died last night (5/11/07). I am of course grieved by her absence here on earth, but I have the extreme joy and comfort of knowing that my Grandma knew Jesus Christ as her personal Lord and Savior. She is with Abba now.

Grandma was a woman who fought hard. She was full of conviction. She was not a woman who hid behind masks. She spoke the truth frankly. She was known to let a curse word slip, and she smoked like a freight train. She was a sinner to the core. But my Grandma loved her Jesus. She struggled with the life she was given, but she loved Him none the less.

Grandma was the single mother of four children, of whom my mother, Nancy is the oldest. She was Grandma to 16 of us, and great-grandmother to 10. She was the owner and CEO of Roff Enterprises, a general contracting construction company.

I have tons of wonderful childhood memories of Grandma… and Grandma’s house. Here are a few:

She always spoiled us with fun shopping trips. 

She would let us swim in her pool at night, and when we were done she would greet us at the back door with a warm towel straight out of the dryer.

I remember her dressing up as Santa Clause and coming to our house… I was so afriad of “Santa” that I wouldn’t go near him. So “Santa” left our house. My Mom told me that it was my Grandma just as she was about to drive away. I ran out of the house and caught her… we ended up having a really fun day.

When Michael (my brother) and I would spend the night at her house she would always wake me up by playing with my hair, and then she would sit on the side of the bed and tell me that she loved me and we’d chat about something for a while. Then she would let me wear her robe to breakfast.

She made me dress up clothes with “twirly” skirts.

She would let me go through her jewelry box and pick out jewelry to wear to church. She almost always let me keep it.

She made the best fried chicken ever!

She grew the most beautiful fragrant roses. She would always let me cut one to take to my Mom.

She would let me clean the office and pay me a ridiculous amount for it. Even if I didn’t really clean it.

There are so many more memories… but I need to rest

Please pray for my Mom, Nancy. She is the oldest child and is the executor of Grandma’s will.

Grandma’s funeral will probably be Thursday, May 17th. Ryan, Ryland, and will be flying to California to be with my family this coming Wednesday.

Thank you for your prayers!!!

This my hearts cry:

You give and take away… my heart will choose to say “Lord, blessed be your name.”

Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble? Job 2:10
  

“Who is God/Jesus/Holy Spirit to you?”

How many times have I heard a well wishing music minister or pastor ask this question from the pulpit? And how many times have I heard the obvious answer “Savior”, or the hearty mention of “Best Friend”, or the endearing cry “Comforter”. Well I am sure it is more than the number of hairs on my head… well maybe not quite that many, but it’s a lot. I’ve sat in many-a service and stubbornly refused to take part in this exercise. My refusal is not out of pure rebellion. No, I refuse because I cannot stomach contrived knowledge of the Holy.

Don’t get me wrong, I adore discovering His many descriptions. I yearn for new revelations of His character… which I (in my finite human state) tend to categorize, label, and name in an attempt to capture some sort of picture of the Truth of who He is. When I take the time to honestly seek and sit in humble silence I get to experience moments filled with God-given pictures, words, emotions, and inexplicable stirrings that lead to ”yada Yaweh” (to perceive and see, find out and discern God intimately). It is in these encounters that I catch glimpses of His magnificence. It is then that I get to inhale the sweet perfume of the Rose (”What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet…” From Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, 1594).

God relates to me most often through music and in musical terms. God is elusive like music… He can’t be contained, but He can be known through experience. God consumes me like a rich melody. He draws me to Himself through music. I find great joy in the fact that He relates to me through this passion He has placed in my soul. A musical term I often use to to refer to God is Composer. I have trusted and loved God as The Composer of life for a long time. However, in my most recent closet times I had one of those light bulb moments.

I realized that God was no simple composer. He is the Great Orchestrator. God as Orchestrator is my most recent obsession. I am working to apply this truth to the battlefield that is my mind. My greatest battle… trusting the Orchestrator even when I don’t like the way the music sounds, know where it’s going, or think I can play all the right notes.

The explanation… A composer is someone who writes music, any music. An orchestrator writes music for an entire orchestra (about 30 different instruments and 50-100 instrumentalists). An orchestrator must see the big picture… thinking of what the violin will do and how that will meld with what the sax is doing, and where the drums will come in and what tempo they will set for rest of the instruments. Orchestration is a complex art form.

While our lives can be compared to a piece of music, we are not alone in our song. We are a part of The Great Symphony. God’s Symphony for the world He created, for His Purpose, His Fame, and His Enjoyment. We have not heard all the other parts, but our section is important to the entire Symphony. Each flat note… each missed beat… each break we take… affects the rest of the Symphony… and the other instrumentalists. God’s Symphony will be played out to perfection. He has orchestrated every part gracefully. He allows us, the instrumentalists, to choose the line of music we will play, but only the music written by the Great Orchestrator is completely right for us. His Symphony is the only one worthy of being played, heard, and experienced. We, the instrumentalists, can choose to be a part of the orchestra, or we can go solo. We can play our own little song, but it will be sad, weak, empty, and useless. It is crucial that we fix our eyes on the orchestration set before us. We cannot be distracted by the petty little tunes played by those not focused on the Source of Truth and Life.

Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith (*The Orchestrator of our faith), who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. -Hebrews 12:2 (the inserted comment is my own)

Who is He to you?
Do you have an honest answer?
Is your view skewed by the irritating groans of the misguided, unfocused, and selfish?
Are you your own distraction from being able yada Yaweh?