Summer Travels: Asheville, NC

Last month, SD and I spent 24 hours in Asheville, NC before heading to Lake Junaluska for Music Week. Neither of us had ever been to Asheville for any length of time and were grateful to have an extra day during our trip to explore the city a bit. Here is a little recap: When we got off the plane in Charlotte, it was hot and the air was thick with that familiar Southern humidity. We were a little weary after our early-morning flight, but eager to begin the "road trip" part of our journey from Charlotte to Asheville. Unfortunately, we had a slight fiasco with our first rental car (a worrisome wheel noise as soon as we pulled out of the parking lot), but the second car was fine. Before we knew it, we were on our way up and over the mountains!

We arrived at our destination - the Rankin House Inn - just a few blocks from center-city. The house sits up on a hill, shrouded by lush green trees. We climbed the stone steps up to the wide, welcoming front porch with painted turquoise floor, potted ferns, and of course, a white wooden swing at one end.

The innkeeper, dressed casually in a white T-shirt and khakis, greeted us warmly with that characteristic North Carolina drawl and made us feel right at home. We sat on the porch swing for a while, rocking our cares away and getting lost in the late afternoon breeze as it swept across the front porch. Heaven!

We ventured out on foot a little while later to explore downtown and peruse menus of the local eateries. The city was alive with buskers, street entertainers, and folks out enjoying the evening. Fun!

When we finally decided that yes, we really did want Southern cuisine, we stepped off the street into the Early Girl Eatery, a small but quaint restaurant with the kitchen in the front and dining room in the back. We couldn't resist the Skillet Fried Chicken and Gravy with sides of Collard Greens and Macaroni and Cheese and the Pimiento Grilled Cheese sounded almost too good to be true. Everything was delicious - a perfect first meal. Oh, and if they ask you if you want jam with your biscuit, the answer is yes. Locally made and the best we've ever tasted! We were a little too full for dessert, but we took a slice of Buttermilk Cake to go (because, Buttermilk Cake).

In the morning, over a breakfast of muffins and fruit salad, we asked the innkeeper more about the story behind the old Rankin house. He was happy to share its history and his part in preserving its legacy.

He showed us around the rest of the house, pointing out trim here and floors there. He even pulled out a few old photographs from an old yellowed envelope from when he first bought the place 20 years ago. What a transformation!

We walked downtown around 11:30 a.m. to stroll a bit more and grab a bite to eat before leaving town. We settled on crepes from Twisted Crepe and were not disappointed! Already looking forward to our next visit to this vibrant city!

Have you visited Asheville? What are some of your favorite things to see or do?

Photo Credit: Images of Early Girl Eatery by Meredith Perdue of Map and Menu

At the Lake

The air is fresh, sweet with the smell of roses. We've had fried chicken, collards, buttermilk cake (with chocolate frosting), and several tall glasses of sweet tea and my southern accent is already starting to come back. This can only mean one thing - it's Music Week!

If you've been reading this blog for a while, you know that Music Week (held at the beautiful Lake Junaluska in NC) holds a special place in my heart (read more here and here). This year, I'm honored to be presenting a session and accompanying one of the choirs!

In my session this week, I spoke about ways to share music and ministry beyond the four walls of the church, with the people of your community. I'll post a full recap soon, but for now, here's a sneak peek!

I love this quote - such a great reminder of what matters and why we do what we do.

Hope y'all are having a wonderful week!

Be still, and wait

It was March of this year — that's when I first felt the small tug on my heart.

SD and I had a heart-to-heart about where God might be leading us as we rode up the ski lift that next week, sun beaming down on the snow-covered slopes below us.

It was one of those conversations that stays with you, one I still cherish. It was a time and place in which we bared our souls in honesty and openness, unsure about what was ahead but willing to trust that God would make it clear in his time.

Change is never easy, especially when it's uncertain.

Certain change is almost easier, in a way. You know it's coming. You know what will change and how. You can prepare for it, or at least feel like you're preparing for it. But uncertain change requires a level of trust and surrender, believing that God will prepare you for whatever is in store.

Last month, we marked the beginning of summer with the sudden influx of several new and exciting prospects. Could this be the change God has been preparing us for? Are we witnessing his hands at work? The message was clear: Wait on me. Trust in me. Surrender to me.

Truth be told, I've never been very good at waiting. Waiting for that email to pop up in my inbox, waiting for that letter in the mail, waiting for the cake to cool before frosting. You know.

Sometimes, it feels as if nothing is happening. Waiting is stillness. All the while, I feel like I should be doing something — preparing, getting ready, making pros and cons lists (I am so Rory Gilmore). Tell me: How is waiting productive?

But I'm beginning to realize that in our waiting — our stillness — God moves.

So, we wait.

I'm learning to accept it, this season. I want to live a life of contentment, to rest in the unsettledness of life right now. I want to live in hope, not fear, and dwell in the security of God's grace and faithfulness rather than the insecurity of my actions and dreams.

Maybe you're there, too, in that place of waiting. Maybe you, too, struggle with the stillness. If so, I hope these words are as comforting to you as they were to me when I stumbled upon them while flipping through the hymnal last week:

"Only be still, and wait God's leisure in cheerful hope, with heart content to take whate'er thy Maker's pleasure and all-discerning love hath sent; we know our inmost wants are known, for we are called to be God's own."

- Georg Neumark (1657), translated into English by Catherine Winkworth (1863)

Be still, and wait on the Lord.