Hello faithful readers. Long time no see, sorry. I just got back from the Northwest Fellowship Campout. Lots has been going on.
My mother broke her arm and pulled her shoulder out of joint. Now she's recovering and has never been in so much pain. Prayers for her are appreciated.
I moved out of AA and into the D. This has been kind of rough for me but I've been thinking about that beatles song, "you say good-bye, and I say hello." I've said good-bye to one life and on to the next phase.
I have a boyfriend. Many of you know him, Nate Rivard. This happened on the campout. I'm pretty excited about this, I think it's going to last, Switzerland and all. He was really seeing things about Jesus at the campout and so that has been thrilling for me. We've been friends for a while, but he decided, after a week of living with me in the woods, that it was okay to tell me he liked me. I said, "I like you too" (which I doubt was any sort of surprise to him) and then we prayed about it. What's nice about getting a boyfriend after a week devoid of showering, is that you know that he's seen you at your absolute worst--sanitation-wise--so it must be something real (The only showers I got were baths, in a river. I did this by choice).
He has an amazing family--three siblings and really cool parents (all believers), and I'm happy that they are going to be a part of my life. Nate, for those who don't know, is a rock-star (okay, maybe not a star yet, but he is to me...) He's in a band called Ace and Asher, and they are really fantastic. I'm looking forward to seeing them play frequently. I hope they last a while.
How did I meet Nate? I sort of grew up with him--I met him through family friends. They belong to the web of metro Detroit christian fellowship. I've known him since I was probably 15, but didn't really start getting to know him until Memorial Day this year. My friend Xander brought him to the NWF picnic, and we were hanging out there, but we have just been friends since.
The other night, when we started going out, he told me he really wants to encourage my relationship with Jesus, which has given me a strong sense of security in him. More about him... Let's see. Besides the fact that he's one of the most caring and considerate people I know, I am happy to tell you that he was an Eagle-Scout. Translation: he's a handy guy. He knows stuff like how to make camp fires and survive plagues. I don't know about plagues, but at least he can survive the wilderness. He's an adventurous guy as well, and I think we're just going to have a lot of fun together. A while back his mother told me that she knew her husband was it when she realized she felt at home with him. Well, I don't know what God has in store, but I can definitely say that I feel at home with Nate. I'm taking this one seriously. Oh, one more thang. He's also an NJ. His middle name is John, so he's Nathaniel John and I'm Nora Jean. I'm Nojay and he's Najay. Okay. I'll stop.
Jenni's wedding is on Saturday. AH!!!! I'm thrilled and stressed about it. So I'm making trips back and forth from AA all week, coming home to my invalid mother.
At the campout, I made this realization: I have a lot of regrets, but one thing I have not regrets about is deciding to follow Jesus. He has never let me down. I've let Him down, sure, but He has been so faithful to me. I'm sure that it probably has something to do with God that I'm not doing theater and my life has taken a few swings and had some misses, but He's been guiding me and I don't regret that.
Here's something I realized at the campout, too. There's a verse in Hebrews that says He's the author and perfector of our faith. I was riding back to Oscoda when I asked God to be the author of my story--that I wanted Him to run the plot and develop my character. But then I wanted to know what the title would be. Would it be, "How Nora Went From Theater to Writing"? Or maybe, "How Nora Saved Detroit," or "How Nora fell in love with Nate Rivard." But then I made the realization of what my story is called. "My Faith." He's the author and perfector of "Our Faith." This made me laugh, but I like it. I know that God doesn't add uneccessary details, that he makes all parts of the story fit into the flow of my faith, the tight theme. And the story never ends, when he's writing it. That's cool to me.
Okay, I'm going to try to figure out how to post a picture of Mr. Nate on here, but if I don't, you can see a slide show of Big Doings on Bigdoings.com Nate is the guy with the bass in the first picture, singing with Ace and Asher. I think it's the first... one of them.
Thanks for reading this epic entry.
