'We have been through everything together'

By Leigh Ann Kesper
In my life I am most thankful for Tyler James Kesper. He is my brother and we have been through everything together. He knows me better than anyone will. He is there when no one else is. Tyler, you are the very best friend anyone could have. I love you and thank you.

[Editor's note: This is part of a series of Journey essays about people we are thankful for in our lives.]

She makes me happy

by Ryan Gueldener
In my life, I am most thankful for Marlene. She is my mom. She makes me happy when I am sad, and she cares for me when I am sick. She means a lot to me. If I didn't have her, I would be heartbroken. Mom, you are the nicest person ever.

[Editor's note: This is part of a series of Journey essays about people we are thankful for in our lives.]

'No one could replace you'

by Olivia Hopkins

In my life I am most thankful for my friend, Abby Reising. Abby and I have been best friends for 11 years. Through these years our friendship has taught me something new every day. I have learned about patience, teamwork, to not judge, that everybody makes mistakes, how to help others and yourself.

To show gratitude I would say to Abby, "Abby, you are the bestest friend EVER! And no one could replace you."

[Editor's note: This is the second in a series of Journey essays about people we are thankful for in our lives.]

Thankful for my mom

by Lauren Wethers
In my life, I'm most thankful for my mom. She's been a constant presence since before I was even born, and I'm pretty sure we have a link--she knows, even if I'm at school, if there's something wrong, and sometimes my head hurts for no reason. I'd probably be completely lost without her.

Mom, I might not always say it out loud, but you're the most important person in my life. You've helped me through everything.

Journey gives thanks, even for the bad stuff

Sometimes in Journey we raise questions that don't seem to have easy answers. Tonight was one of those nights. The Bible says to "rejoice always," and to "pray without ceasing." And the Book of Common Prayer, in the General Thanksgiving, says to be thankful "for those disappointments and failures" that lead us to acknowledge our dependence on God alone. Be thankful for the bad things that happen in our lives? Tough to do. But tonight we tried. We listed not only all the good things we are thankful for (like friends and bathrooms and Buffalo Wild Wings), but also the bad stuff, the hard times and struggles (like friendships that end, rejection and fights). Tonight we were thankful for good and bad, or tried to be. We listed them on sticky notes and shaped them into a multicolored cross. We also chose one person in particular to give thanks for in a brief essay. Those essays will be published below here this week, starting tonight with Lauren Wethers. Stay tuned!

Journey meets tonight!

Normally, Journey meets on the 1st and 3rd Sundays of the month. But since November has 5 Sundays, we will be meeting tonight, November 29, the fifth Sunday of November. See you there!

We are saints!

Joe Babajan (above, left), a Journey alum, joined us tonight for pizza and the lesson. Joe is on his way to Camp Pendleton (CA) where he is a helicopter pilot for the Marines.

Thanks to Joe Babajan for visiting his old Journey stomping grounds tonight. Just like 7 years ago, Joe was an active contributor tonight to the discussion, a sometimes heated debate over what it means to be a saint. We finally agreed that we are all members of the communion of saints, and wrote comments of praise and encouragement on cards taped to our backs.





Photos/Tom Atwood

Relationships

The collage above not only represents different kinds of relationships, it is the result of relationships (and collaboration) among members of Journey, who created it tonight. (Click the image to see a larger, more detailed version.) Our meeting tonight was highly informative, with some of us learning for the first time what a "bromance" is. Definitely a modern relationship!

We were also glad to have two new visitors tonight - Miles Washington, a 7th grade trumpeter from Creve Couer, Missouri, and Leigh Kesper, a sophomore at EHS. Bromances may come and go, but as Jesus pointed out to the Pharisees (see below), marriage is holy and sacred.

Mark 10:2-14

Some Pharisees came, and to test him they asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?’ He answered them, ‘What did Moses command you?’ They said, ‘Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her.’ But Jesus said to them, ‘Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you. But from the beginning of creation, “God made them male and female.”

“For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife,* and the two shall become one flesh.” So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.’

Then in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. He said to them, ‘Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.’

Pizza and Annie's: Journey 2009/2010 off to a healthy start

Ryan Gueldener, new member of Journey, gets a front row seat for photo at Annie's as Journey meets for the first time this fall. Photo/Tom Atwood

Just remember, after the pizza tonight (and before the frozen yoghurt), we talked about the great commandment(s) in Jesus' answer to the lawyer's question in Matthew 22. These two commandments--love God; love your neighbor--will guide us this year as we discuss the readings from week to week. How can we love God with all our heart? What do we need to do? And how can we love our neighbor? What on Earth does that really mean?

Matthew 22: 37-40
He said to him, ‘ “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.” This is the greatest and first commandment. And a second is like it: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.’



Lauren Wethers and Ellen Atwood get a little (very little) exercise on the way to Annie's. Photo/Tom Atwood

Journey ends with a picnic, resumes again in the fall

Of course the journey never really ends, but at St. Andrew's, Journey ended for the year Sunday afternoon with a picnic at the Winston Brown Recreation Complex near the Watershed Nature Preserve. The weather was perfect, the grill was sizzling and Ellen's homemade chocolate chip cookies were the best batch she has ever baked, she claims. It was great fun, and we'll see you all in the fall, when the Journey begins again.
Photos by Tom Atwood (click images to enlarge)

What we are praying about

At the Journey meeting last Sunday at St. Andrew's, we talked about Paul's letter encouraging the Thessalonians to "pray without ceasing," and to give thanks "in all circumstances." So, we came up with a list, a long list, of what we are thankful for: the good things, and the not so good things in our lives. Using sticky notes, members of Journey wrote down specific challenges and specific blessings they are thankful for, and then arranged them on the wall of the Undercroft in the shape of a cross. We stood around the cross and gave thanks.


The list of blessings and challenges that makes up the cross is interesting. Below are just some of the challenges in the lives of Journey members that we prayed about:

Knowing what the future holds
Grandfather's cancer
Grades
Weight
Death
School
Relationships
Understanding God
Temptation
Accepting deaths
Sickness
Job market
Gas prices
Recession
Puberty
Moving
Economy
Identity
Academic ability
My hair
Parents
Going to college
Breaking bad habits
Pressure
Fake friends
Losing people



Next week, I'll post a list of some of the good things in the lives of Journey members that we also gave thanks for around that cross. To see the complete list, drop in at the Undercroft and take a look at our sticky-note cross.