shiny penny

Life has been mildly chaotic around here lately. Philip is in class every night this week (it's a stats class, so it's a bit comical to watch him tortured by the thought of math. . . meanwhile our brothers are doing calculus - we were definitely the social science kids in our families :) I work every day for the next two weeks (it's that Pearson blood in me) until we take a weekend breather to Rome for a few days.

This last weekend I worked Sat and Sunday but did get in on our HomeBuilders group where Philip is helping lead Focus on the Family's The Truth Project (it's basically the worldview material I had the opportunity to study while I was at Focus on the Family Institute) - EXCELLENT curriculum.

After that on Sun. afternoon, our friend Jana came over and I baked my famous wheat germ, flax seed wheat crust homemade pizza. It was fun hear about her latest tales from adventures on travels to undisclosed locations ;) We had a great night connecting with her. She and her husband Matt are what Philip calls "shiny pennies." These two are the top of the top of the top of the Air Force. It blows my mind sometimes to think about who they are and what they do. The thing that strikes me so much is their humility. It is really a blessing to be challenged by people around us who live out loud Paul's words in Philippians:

But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings being conformed to death; in order that I may attain to resurrection from the dead.

Not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethern, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upwardcall of God in Christ Jesus.

In a world that values position and prestige it is so easy to fall into the trap of this world's definition of "success." The truth is, a degree, a job, a paycheck, a rank - it's nothing compared to the One we exist to serve, love and be ambassadors for. I really respect people who have achieved success by the world's standards but continue to live with humility as they press on and continue to live and work with eternal perspective.