Loving Your City

I was so blessed to attend a conference at the Seminary called Church on Fire led by Dr. Steven Gaines. And by now you should totally know that I can't stand wimpy leaders - women or men, and let me tell you, this guy is no wimp. (Neither is his wife, but she didn't get to talk that much!) He gave us all a good kick in the teeth about a lot of things, and we all needed it. What a blessing.

I felt compelled to share with all my peeps in the Church one of the things he shared.

Jeremiah 29:4-7 (ESV translation)

"Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem into Babylon: Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there and do not decrease. But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare."

Living in and around New Orleans can be so frustrating at times. I love this city and all its quirks, and yet, even I sometimes feel like I'm in a Babylonian exile. Yet GOD exorted His people to establish themselves in the land of their captivity, and to PRAY for it.

Wow.

How many of us do not pray for the city, region, state, or country we live in because we don't like it? I hated living in Alabama - did I pray for it? I don't remember. That must mean that I didn't, or if I did, I did so half-heartedly. How many people do I know that complain and rant about New Orleans, the tourists, the occult, the sin and vice, the strippers, and the lack of passion amongst God's people? Too many. Myself included.

Shame on us. If we don't pray for our city and region, who will? Who better to pray for New Orleans, Metairie, Kenner, Algiers, Chalmette, Gretna, LaPlace, Houma, Belle Chase, etc, etc, than US??? No one, that's who.

We share a common ground with the poor, the strippers, the politicians - we share a community.

You know, last year I prayed off and on that God would bring thousands of Southeast Louisiana folks unto Himself before the year's end. Did you catch that? I prayed off and on for it.

God forgive me of my laziness and unbelief. You are the God of miracles and second chances. You saved Nineveh even when Jonah, the prophet, ran from You and became angry when You had mercy on them after he did go. God grant me the grace, power, determination, and unwavering faith as I pray for New Orleans and the cities that surround it. And God lead others to pray too.

I love living in New Orleans

Living in New Orleans, or just on the outskirts of it, is so much fun. Every couple of months we need an excuse to stay out of work or school, so we have a holiday! There is usually some sort of festival going on too like French Quarter Fest, Jazz Fest, Strawberry Festival, Tomato Festival, etc, etc. Who wouldn't love to live in a place where you can celebrate anything (or everything) at any given time?!

So here's a little overview of our New Orleans holiday season. Christmas was great, for the most part. Thomas and I were pretty sick the entire time, so obviously it could have been better! We had a party at our house for the church members and neighbors, and a friend from college came down soon after that. A couple of dinner parties led us to New Year's, which we spent in the French Quarter watching the fleur de lis drop and fireworks display. Last weekend we went to New Orleans East in the Vietnamese community for Tet (Chinese New Year). The next night we were in a swank French Quarter hotel for the St. Barbara military ball.

I've got some pictures below for your enjoyment, and I'm going to attempt uploading a video of Tet as well. I don't know if there will be any sound, but just imagine the fireworks being right over your head with a bunch of drums in the background. We felt like we were in the middle of a bunch of cannons going off. Enjoy!