Prayer Journal 11/28/01

Lord, I am still sick.  I went to the doctor today and she prescribed some powerful antibiotics for me that will hopefully clear everything up.  The last few nights, I have just gone to bed and been too tired to get up and do anything.  I love You and I thank You for saving me.  I thank You that my classes are all finishing up without any real hitches.  I should be able to end up getting a B in trigonometry, and either an A or B in my education classes as well.  Thank You, Lord!

Prayer Journal 12/12/01

Lord God, I don’t understand me.  I know that I am deeply desiring to draw nearer to You again, but I also see so many obstacles coming up to try to stop that.  Lord, I pray that You will give me strength to persevere through them and to focus my eyes completely and totally upon You, the Author and Finisher of my faith.  Jesus, thank You for dying for me.

Less than a week from now, I will have conducted on my very first concert.  I am excited about it, Lord.  I also see that my body is gearing up for it with stress.  I don’t like that.  I want peace, Lord.  I want to relax.  I want to know that it’s all going to work out.  I am sure that it will, but I also have so many thoughts racing through my mind.  There is so much left to do between now and then, and so little time in which to do it.  Lord, I pray that You will guide me.  Help me, Jesus!  Thank You for the wonderful things that You do in my life, and I praise You for getting me through my last semester as an undergraduate.  Thank You so much for giving me life and for giving me the many opportunities I have to reach so many people.  I love the kids I work with, Lord.  I want to help them all in whatever ways that I can.  I praise You, Lord, for everything that I do.  In the wonderful name of Jesus, I thank You and pray…Amen!

Reflections

From: Joel Wagner
Sent: Wednesday, December 19, 2001 10:35 PM
To: Angela Gipson
Subject: Reflections

Last night was my debut in the concert world of conducting.  Aside from all region and area marching, this was the coolest feeling I’ve had all semester.  Looking back, though, I realize that we’ve done a lot of stuff.  In my required 5 hours a week of observation, it almost feels like I’ve not had much time for anything else!

This school year has been going extremely well, and He has blessed so much of what has gone on.  While it has not been without problems, things have generally seemed to go in one way or another in our favor.  I will end up getting no grade lower than a B in my classes this semester, and more than likely will have two passed ExCETs out of the way by the time it’s all said and done.  The HS/MS football game halftime show was a lot of fun for the kids, and I’m sure it was for the Kerr band parents as well!  The All Region results speak for themselves, not so much in what we have going on with what we did or all the people you have helping you, but more in God’s abundant GRACE.  We ended up taking a boatload of kids to the all region concert and most of them were seventh graders!

Grace.  Funny you should bring it up.  I don’t understand it.  I mean, I know that I never will in my flesh, but I want to understand it more.  I want to, as Peter puts it, “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2 Peter 3:18).  I don’t know what any of it means, but I know I want that.  If you have any suggestions, I’m open to anything that will help me to draw nearer to God (cf. James 4:8 if memory serves…).  I think that will be my primary focus for the upcoming year: to find out what it means to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  I figure that in the process of seeking that answer, I might just end up actually growing in the grace and knowledge of Him as well.

It is so awesome to see God working like He has been in both of our lives.  I know not what the upcoming semester has in store for the band program; let alone what tomorrow holds for me.  I don’t know what He wants me to do about being a band director next year or going to school or what.  I’ll leave that up to God and His perfect timing.  He has never let me down before, so I see no reason to think He’s going to begin now!  Once again, thank you for putting up with me and for guiding me through this phase of my education.