Hello again...

I've neglected my blog the past couple of months, so I thought an update was in order. I also never entered my last journal entry from my trip...however, I have lost my journal at the time being and so I wouldn't be able to enter it if I wanted :(

Moving on...

Life has been....crazy, lately. It seems I can't catch a break from this whirlwind of a course I live. It's not been bad, it's just been hectic lately. School has me engaged 24/7, as well as work at the church. Then I've just taken on a tutoring job with a 4th grade Korean girl as well as an English tutor for her older cousin four nights a week all the while applying for a job in South America. Whew! I'm out of breath. Literally.

If you know me at all, then you know I'm a fan of being shiftless and that my down time is very vital to my being. Let's face it, I love to rest. I love to be idle and kick back; not have a care in the world. If I could have it my way, I would totally choose to relax, settle in and repose. That's not been the case lately and I'm starting to lose my focus. I'm not even talking about just spiritually, but academically and professionally too. I've the worst attitude about school right now and I really could careless about how I come across to my professors. That's not me! I've also lost it at work that I actually told my roommate the other day I wish they would just fire me. Who is this!?!? This isn't the person I want to be nor who I was created to be. I'm so tired all the time and the only thing I look forward to now are my tutoring sessions with my Korean friends, which I don't actually have time for. If I'm truly honest, I'm ready to move on from school to much greater things. To what I have planned for my life. I'm ready to be out of school, leave this town, even the people. Don't get me wrong, I love the friends and the people that have become my "family" here, but I'm ready for something different. I want something more, countless.

But I can't. Not now, anyway. I know I have a place here and while I am struggling to fully believe it, I have to come to the realization that I have a purpose where I am at. That this season is not only preparing me for things to come, but ultimately holds meaning and reason. I can't count the number of opportunities that God has given me to "be light" to others since returning from my trip this past summer and even though I am excited about those opportunities, my heart still longs for something more abounding. I know there is purpose, I know there is a reason. And I'm fighting to hold on to that in the midst of my efforts. It's not easy, but I know God is continually working in me and blessing me. Funny how I covet the stationary, but yet crave a prevalent life...as if the two really go together.

Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him...
Psalm 37:7

Journal Entry 6

Today was a pretty good day. I wouldn't classify it underneath wonderful! amazing! stupendous! But it wasn't bad. I guess it just wasn't as fun as the previous day... I was with a good group of people--actually, I haven't been with a "bad" group of people. I will admit I was kind of in a funk throughout the morning. But God totally delivered me from my funky mood when I saw this little boy.




Seriously, how could you not love him!? He's so adorable. We had been dropped off at one school for about an hour. The students were all gathered in one classroom and listening with wide eyes. As my teammate began to preach this little boy (and others) came up and just stood at the door. He was so intrigued as my teammate spoke. I was sitting by the door when he came up and I couldn't help but be drawn to him, he was so cute. I got him to come and sit in my lap as he listened intently. Only 2 years old and I just prayed--God, I realize this little boy may not understand every word spoken or even comprehend the Gospel, but I know that You've brought him here for a reason. You're engaging him for a reason. I don't know how You can use this, but I know You can use this moment. Here and now for Your glory. I pray for his salvation that somewhere down the road he would come to a realization of Your love for him. How precious are Your children.

We got done and ended up having time to play with the kids while we waited for our ride. Such a good time to share love with these children, Your children. They are beautiful and I am overwhelmed by the love that You have given me for them. I praise you Father for love that abounds and that You freely give.

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Day 13 (I suppose)
Today was refreshing! We got to 7 schools today. We had 4 Americans in our group and 3 translators. I only preached twice today but it was still a good day. We had a merienda at every school we went to. I was so full by the end of the day. We had Pansit at the first school at about 8:30 in the morning--that was like a full meal in the morning! I could only eat some of it because I just wasn't hungry. They had the food made especially for us so I had to eat something. Then we had snacks at every other school along with Coke all day long--I just wanted ice cold water all day! No problems though, just trying to push through. Still having to watch what I eat so I don't get sick again. The last school we were at today was great. The kids loved us! "Americanos!" they would say. So cute! I would wink at them and they would just laugh like it was the funniest thing on earth. I wish I could take the children home with me. I'm going to miss them so dearly. I'm going to miss the people here in general. They're Your children God. You've given me a love for them and they're all so special. I've watched as You've poured Your love upon them and redeemed their lives. It's beautiful. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of Your work here, Father. It truly has been a blessing.

One more day to reach the lost here. May Your will be done.

sleepless night...

I can't sleep tonight. Sometimes I cannot settle my mind. I tend to think too much, especially when it's time to lay my head in respite. Most nights it's easy to put my thoughts to rest. Tonight is a different story. I want to be anywhere but here, to escape to some place untouched where no one actually knows me and it's a fresh start. Altered. My heart is longing for unfamiliar. My soul is weary of the mundane. I'm ready to move on to something untrodden. My head fills with thoughts of unknown and foreign. There is abrupt excitement in the idea of this, but do I truly understand what all this entails?

I've had a hard time being back in LaGrange--Georgia--America, where everything is familiar and known to me. Things have been bustling since my return from my trip and I am not fond of hectic. I never have been. I enjoy my free time. There are moments when I am partial to being idle--and I truly enjoy all it has to offer. Being too busy seems to make me unpleasant. Resentful. Indignant. I've become corrosive with the accustomed and right now, I just want to leave it trailing.

But I can't, not now anyway. These past few weeks, God has reminded me of 1 Cor. 7:17 :
each one should retain the place in life that the Lord assigned to him and to which God has called him.

For whatever reason, God has appointed me here, in this place, in this season. He has reminded me that He is loyal. I must serve Him where He calls me and understand that it is an honor; a privilege to be surrounded by familiarity in this time and to be thankful of His knowledge of what is best for me. I cannot complain, for He has called me here.

Journal Entry 5 (Recapping days 6-11)

So to recap the last 6 days...

Last week ended well. I preached 15 times and enjoyed every minute of it! God has really reminded of His word and His promises through the Gospel. This trip has been a huge blessing so far. Thursday evening we went to McDonalds for supper. Can I just say I'm so tired of fast food that I can get in America. It's not even really the same as an American McDonalds--I digress. After we ate, Mr. Tebow asked us to share some thoughts/stories from the week. I really enjoyed this since I haven't had a chance to really meet everyone and get to know some people. Some stories were funny, and some were really touching. It's great to hear the different ways of how God is working on this trip. Then we were told what we needed for our trip to the orphanage and what time we were going to be leaving Friday. I was pretty pumped at this point! I had been waiting, patiently might I add, for this trip to see those kids. So I was really ready.

Friday was a good day! It was a short day, but a good one nonetheless. Everyone in our group was going to the orphanage so we kind of cut our day short so we could go back, pack, and get ready to leave that evening. So we returned early in the afternoon and I showered--a good shower since I was told we wouldn't really have a chance to get one this weekend...what!? Then I packed my stuff up and got it ready to go. Little did I know this was going to be a rather rough trip for me...
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Orphanage
We left Friday night for Manila to spend the night and wake up early to catch a flight @ 7AM for Mindanao--What!? Yeah, so we sat in traffic for 2 and half hours in Manila Friday night--blah--and while we did that I caught up on some sleep. We finally got to the hotel and I was sooo exhausted. And I was dizzy from being exhausted. I was also really thirsty. Once we got up to our room, all I could do was fall on the mattress and curl up and sleep. My body was so tired. And I was so thirsty. I think my body was shutting down. So the next morning, we got up around 3:30AM and I felt horrible. I was still so thirsty and dizzy. So I pushed through and made it to the airport, made it through customs, got our tickets and waited on our flight. It was a pretty long morning but we finally got on our flight and headed to Mindanao. I slept on the plane because that's what I do now and before I knew it, we were there! Landed in General Santos, caught a bus for two hours and tried to sleep while riding. The roads were pretty curvy, or maybe it was my imagination, but I ended up getting a little car sick along with a fever. I knew something was wrong. The dehydration and exhaustion--it was going downhill fast. I was definitely jostled around on this bus ride and so that didn't help much. I was freezing because of my fever and this bus was hot. Something terrible was happening and I knew it. I kept trying to tell myself it was psychological or that it was just motion sickness--it was neither. We finally got to the orphanage and I was thirstier than ever! I still had a fever and it was like 80-90 degrees outside and I wasn't breaking a sweat! My head hurt so bad but I didn't want to miss anything. So I just pushed through it. The kids were wonderful! And I knew I wanted to play with them. They were so awesome to be around--so loving. We went down to the river to play with them and just love on them. I'm glad I didn't miss that. I took some medicine for my headache and fever so I was starting to feel better and just figured that was it. Not exactly. It rained for a good while and so we played with the kids underneath some shelter and sat around with them and just talked. One girl taught me some songs and we sang those together. I was having so much fun but feeling awful. So I finally made myself go lie down for a while to boost some energy and make myself feel better. I slept for about an hour and a half when I made myself get up and go back and play. The fevers never stopped and so when dinner time came, I ate rice. That was it. Then I went to bed for the rest of the night. I missed the rest of dinner and the kids program they put on for us. I felt so bad. So the middle of the night is when it hit--the long awaited diarrhea. I knew it was coming. It was just a matter of time. So anyone can imagine how the rest of the trip went that weekend. The bus ride, plane ride, bus ride again stuck in more of Manila's fine traffic...it all was just lovely. We stopped at a Burger King at 10:30 at night and everyone in the Philippines was there! These people literally never sleep. I had rice, again. Then we got back on the bus and rode some more to our next city. We arrived at the hotel at 3:45AM and once again, had to get ready and go for our next day. I however, didn't go out that day. It was an awful day of stomach cramps and smelling fuel from the traffic outside. Both not a good combination. Sleep was good when I could get some. I ate one bananna and drank some Gatorade. Everything was horrible until about 7PM that night when I started to feel better. Things started to settle down. I woke up the next morning and things were so much better. I was ready to go and feeling like myself again. Thank you Jesus for getting me through that. Never do I want to experience that again. I'm good. Promise.
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The next day...
The day after I was sick was a great day! I mean a really good day. Not sure if it was because I was just happy to be back or what but it was a great day. I ended being in a group with some great girls and we had so much fun! The pastors were great as well that day! We all laughed the whole day. We got to 10 schools. I just love getting to go from school to school to see the children. They're so beautiful and lovable. They listen so intently and just hang on your every word sometimes. They're obviously hungry and want to be loved. I'll love them :) We ate chicken and rice for lunch at a really cute place that I want to go back to. We met up with our other half of the group so it was nice to hang out with them as well. The pastors are so funny. I love getting to hear their stories and learn about their families. They're just amazing people. Such a good day to visit and share the Gospel after such a wretched day before. I praise you God for giving me this day!

Journal Entry 4 (sort of)

So my days and time is definitely off. I'm having a hard time keeping up with what day it actually is here and in America. Haven't been able to call the parents yet--we've just been so busy and I really haven't had time to take everything in yet. I guess that's a good thing...maybe I'll get a chance to call them today.

I woke up again around 4:20AM again--it was a little bit rougher this morning though. Not feeling 100% today but nothing I can't handle. I had the best bananna this morning and Dunkin Donuts for breakfast--Dunkin Donuts, Thanks God :) You know just what I like! We also got PB&J sandwiches packed for us for a snack today--unfortunately, I forgot mine today :( I was with a good group of girls today and we had a pretty awesome day! It started out a little rocky--spiritual warfare possibly. The first school I went to was a pretty big school. 500+, elementary school. I was pumped! I was going to get to share with all of these children and teachers. Parents were also there dropping their kids off and hung around to see what we were going to do, so that was a plus in my eyes. Our pastor/translator talked with the principal about allowing us to speak. She was very reluctant to allow us to do this and only allowed 15 minutes for us to "do our thing". Her school was in some sort of contest and they won, so she wanted to announce it during their flag ceremony. Even though I don't understand the language real well, I can pick up on some of the language and definitely the body language, so I could tell that she was very apprehensive about letting us do this. Give me the words to say Lord, I have 15 mins to share with them about You. Allow me to tell them what is most important and what they need to hear. So they had their flag cermony and did some morning excercises and then she introduced us and allowed us to go first before she made her announcements. So I started telling them about Jesus--thanks God for the words. I got all the way through the prayer and the principal told our pastor/translator that it was time and we needed to go. I was like, what!? I need to follow up with them Lord. So the pastor wrapped it up real quick for me and we were done. It wasn't even 15 minutes yet, and I was a little frustrated I didn't get to follow up with them. We were going to stay for the rest of the announcements but the principal asked us to leave. When we got back in the jeep, the pastor apologized for what had just happened and said that most Filipinos were not like that. That they were very friendly and hospitable. It's interesting how caring they are compared to people in America. This would be a typical situation in America but here, it's not. Interesting the different cultures. God, I pray that You use anything that I said this morning--I pray that they know how much You love them and what Your Son did on the cross for them. Help me to realize I can't do it all, in fact that it's not me who does anything. It's You in me that accomplishes things for Your kingdom. I also pray that You would not allow satan to be any part of our work here. You are faithful God. You know exactly what You are doing and I thank You for that.

We had Filipino cuisine today. I must admit that I was a little skeptical of this, however it turned out to be really good! We had a really good day today. We got to know the pastors a little bit better. I love that part! I love getting to hear about their lives and how long they've been in ministry over here. They truly understand what it means to live out their faith--they get it. And it's so refreshing to be around. Thank you God for the encouragement they've been to me already and the ministry they're involved in. Bless them and their families as they continue to minister to the Filipinos here.

Going to bed now. A long but enjoyable day!

Journal Entries 2-3

So yeah, God, I asked for it and now you're giving it to me. Sacrifice. It's about 12AM and I just found out I have 4 hours to sleep, on the bus ride, to Urdaneta City, when it will be time for us to get up. So when we arrive at our hotel, we'll have time to put our stuff down, "freshen up", and go eat breakfast. Ok, I can do this. Sacrifice for Jesus, right? Got some sleep on the bus so that is good. Bus driver drove kind of crazy--I wasn't use to that so this is new...however, I am starting to feel a little more energized. Thanks God. I need all the energy You will supply for my day.

...unpacked, "freshened up", and ready for breakfast. I'm feeling pretty good at this point and am anticipating what this will be like. Have I mentioned that I'm really not sure how this is all going to go down? You're in control God. You've called me here and I pray you use me.

Today was the first day of our adventure. God supplied all the energy I needed and I praise Him for that! It was a tough day as I didn't really know what I was doing, but God has been faithful. My first Gospel presentation at an elementary school--it was ok. Let's just say I'm glad God uses anything for His good. It's kind of difficult to get use to having a translator repeat everything you say. I also need to remember to just break it down phrase by phrase or sentence by sentence. Not really sure about this but I know things will get better and God will use me. I'm clinging to that. I got to preach twice today. I would have liked more "practice" but it will come. The day was a little slow but not a bad first day. We took one of my teammates back to the hotel because she wasn't feeling well. Ate at McDonalds for lunch and then hit the road again. However, we had a little bit of jeep trouble but nothing that set us back for hours. Just kind of a slow day. I love the people here! Thank you Father for giving me a heart for these people. They're so beautiful and friendly. I love that You have created them this way. I'm feeling a little tired now that I have been sitting still...It's about 4pm and I am going to take a nap until dinner.

A few hours later...
I just slept through dinner! Got to love jet lag. It's about 9:30pm and I'm debating on whether or not to eat something or go back to bed. I'm still really tired...ok, going to bed now :)

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Day 4, I think

I feel great this morning! I got 10 hours of sleep since I slept through dinner and went back to bed after realizing I slept through dinner. My alarm clock went off at 4:20AM and I actually feel pretty good! Thanks Lord, for the much needed rest. I just knew today was going to be great and it was! Lord, you have definitely blessed me today. I was with a great group and we got to 14 schools today! We ended up dropping people off with pastors to hit more schools. I liked this a lot. I ended up getting to preach 5 times today and I am already feeling more comfortable with preaching. Thank you Lord, for giving me courage and boldness to preach the Gospel. Thank You that You have not given me a spirit of timidity, but of power and love. These people need Jesus. They need to hear the Good News and I thank You that You have chosen me today to tell them. "I may not be a trained speaker, but I do have knowledge." 2 Corinthians 11:6
Lord, I have the knowledge. I know You personally and I know the Gospel. Help me to take it wherever you lead me. God, allow me to continue to be used by You where You see fit. Thank you for the opportunities you have given me today. Your children truly are beautiful.

Dinner was at 6pm promptly and I just made a fool out of myself. Singing songs. One of my favorite things to do with my closest friends, in my car alone, and for worship. Not to perform for all to hear just because someone told me to. Jingle Bells. Really? Oh me, it's so messed up. Pizza Hut for dinner, was pretty good. Mr. Tebow spoke about why the Gospel really is good news. I'm challenged as I ponder on the Gospel in general. Thanks Lord, it's been food to my soul. It's about 8pm and I'm going to bed. I love it!

Journal Entry 1

**This is just a summed up version of my journal entry--they're way too long to post all of it but hopefully you will get a good idea of the things we did and what was going on.

7/18/09: I left for the airport at 8am. Got to my flight by 10 after. I said some sad goodbyes to my mother, father and Katie. It was good, no cries :) Confusion maybe but all is well. Had about an hour & and half before I left ATL so I did what I love most--people watched! It was good, some old lady sitting next to me had a Beyonce ringtone on her phone--so silly! Since I didn't have a seat assigned just yet my name was one of the ones called first to board--yay! I felt like I was getting special treatment, even though I know I wasn't. The flight left around 12:30pm for Detroit where I met my teammates. Nervous, excited, scared, anxious--this all describes what I felt. God is in control. He has brought me here and I have nothing to fear. Got to keep reminding myself of this. Landed in Detroit and I had exactly enough time to use the bathroom, get some lunch, let a man yell at me because he has "called my name for the last time" to get my seat assignment, meet the team and board the flight. What a whirlwind! Teammates were nice and immediately welcoming--it was good! I was feeling pretty pumped at this point and really excited about getting to know my teammates when I realized I wasn't near most of my teammates on the flight at all. Actually, I wasn't sitting with any of them. It was fine though, no worries. I'll just meet the Filipino woman to my left and the Japanese girl to my right.

Well, the Filipino woman didn't seem to want to talk much and the Japanese girl went straight to sleep so I was left on this 13 hour flight to stare at my hands basically. So I tried to sleep, I was so exhausted. So I closed my eyes for about an hour but didn't really get much sleep at all. Just trying to focus my mind on the things set before me. A lot of prayer trying to prepare my heart for the people we will minister to.

Couple hours later...
So now the flight is just plain boring and I can't really sleep like I want to, some of my music didn't get put on mp3 player thingy and now I'm kind of pissed. Plus I have this middle seat where I can't move anywhere--how quickly my focus changes in a matter of hours. God get me through this and get me through this quickly...please.

Few hours later...
I just want to sleep and the lady next to me won't shut the window--the light is shining in my eyes! I don't even know what time it is my time or Japan time and my body is just really confused and exhausted. I also have to use the bathroom, but for some weird reason, I can't!!!! How uncomfortable I feel. God please help me to use the bathroom and help this flight to end soon :)

Few more hours later...
So I think it's 7/19 now, maybe. I'm really not sure anymore about date or time. My eyes are really bloodshot and dry. I still have to use the bathroom. The lady finally shut the window but I have yet to get some much needed sleep. I feel kind of crappy just because of all this and I have lost some focus here. God help me focus back on my purpose in this. Also help me get some sleep even if it's just and hour.

Finally arriving in Nagoya, Japan!!!! How happy my heart is :) Hitting some really bad turbulance and hoping I don't die. God is good though. I made it through the flight. Not really looking forward to getting back on this flight but we're that much closer to Manila. Did I mention that the food on these flights is really turning my stomach? They feed you so much yet I don't really want space food 6 times in a flight. Blah! All is well though. Thanks God.

Arrived in Nagoya, used the squatty potty, stretched for about 20 mins, got back on the 4 hour flight and had a whole row to myself--thank you, thank you, thank you God :) Slept for about 2 hours straight! Skipped the space food dinner again and napped on and off until we arrived in Manila. Mabuhay! Praise God we made it! I smell bad, and look bad, but all my bags came in and I'm so ready for a bed. Thanks God for getting me through what I feel has been the roughest 48 hours of my life but yet is nothing compared to what your son did for us on the cross. Still, I thank You and praise You. May I come to understand what it truly means to sacrifice.

Home Sweet Home...

I'm home and home has never felt so good! I've been back for about a week and a half now. Things have been crazy since I've been back so sorry for the delay in posts.

The Philippines were amazing! God is truly at work over there and it was an incredible experience! Neither time nor space permit me to share half of what God taught me, how He worked through me and just the awesomeness of the whole journey. I got to meditate on the Gospel for two solid weeks and God did great and mighty things. How wonderful is the story of His love for us; how He sent His son to die for each and every soul out there! God is good. He is faithful and I am honored that He chose me to partake in His work! It's in His arms that I have truly been blessed. We have thousands of new brothers and sisters in Christ--praise God! My heart has been changed and my eyes have been opened. To God be the glory!

Over the next couple of weeks I will post some excerpts from my journal that I kept while I was there. I figured this would be the best way in letting you see the day to day things that went on. So that is to come in the next couple of weeks.

For now, here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip. Enjoy!

This little boy was just hanging out at one of the schools we went visited.

Listening to the Gospel presentation.

The most beautiful Filipino boy ever!

Me preaching at one of the schools.

Filipino children praying to recieve Christ.

Some beautiful mountain scenery.

Me and some children after I shared the Gospel at their school.

Some Filipino boys at one of the schools.

Philippines--Here!!

It's time. Tomorrow I leave for the Philippines!! Really, Really, Really excited :) I can't thank everyone enough for helping me out finacially, encouraging me and most importantly, praying for me. Y'all have truly been a blessing to me and I am very grateful for everything!

A few things I ask for y'all to be in prayer about since I won't have internet access:
-the people: exactly that. everyone we come in contact with and those who we'll be ministering to and sharing the Good News with.
-travel: I hope that my flights are all on time and we have a safe travel. It's going to be a long day tomorrow so I'll need strength and energy to make it through.
-my health: I hope that I don't get sick or contract some kind of disease--seriously though. I would love to be in good health while I'm there so it doesn't slow me down or distract me.
-our group: I pray for unity among our group that we can work well together, lift eachother up in encouraging ways and just have a sense of unity among our group.
-me: That I may be used and be obedient to God's calling.

Thanks again for prayers and encouragement. I covet them during this time. May God's light shine upon those who have not heard and His glory be done!

The Philippines is near (July 18-Aug 2)!!

Two weeks from now I will be in the Philippines! :) My heart can't even contain the joy that I feel when I think of being able to serve my Father. I am honored that God has called me to this trip and that He wants to use me for His glory. I truly have an amazing Father who I can put my hope in and where I find rest. My prayer for this trip is just that--that the people of the Philippines may find rest and comfort in His loving arms as we spread His word and love. I pray that their eyes would be opened to the glory of the King.

In preparation for this journey, I've been able to spend some much needed time in the Word; to be able to block out unnecessary distractions and just meditate on the promises of God. He has shown His faithfulness to me so much throughout this whole experience as He has provided for me financially and given me an abundance of support through my family and friends. I am blessed. I want to reach the Philippines for His glory. I want to see the Filipinos the way He sees them and loves them. I want my heart to reflect His love and goodness that can only be found in Him.

1 Corinthians 15:58 says "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."

This is my prayer for the trip--to stand firm as I give myself fully to the Lord's work. How wonderful it is that my labor will not be in vain. Praise be to God!

Divine Romance

I'm a new fan of Phil Wickham. If you don't know who I am talking about you should really think about checking him out (http://www.philwickham.com/). His music is awesome and filled with scripture and truth. One song in particular has capture my attention over the last couple of weeks (which is about how long I've been a fan). This song is called Divine Romance. It talks about the beauty of our relationship with Christ and is an offering of ourselves to Him. This song has really been my praise and prayer these past couple of weeks and each time I play it I become more captivated by the beauty of Christ and His love for me.

I love that the title of this song is called Divine Romance because that truly is what our relationship with Christ is--a Divine Romance. As girls, our thoughts are usually romanticized no matter if a guy is in them or not. (One of my friends use to say that if we were in a moment that we would consider to be romantic but there wasn't a man in that moment with us, then it was a "rotic" moment. Get it, "man" taken out of roMANtic ="rotic"....I digress) ....how amazing is it that the God of this universe who created you and me wants to romance us. But it's not the kind of romance we see in movies and tv. It's a different kind of romance-a divine romance. It's the type of romance that can only happen from the Divine One. It's special and beautiful and I stand in awe of everything that it is!






lyrics:

The fullness of Your grace is here with me
The richness of Your beauty’s all I see
The brightness of Your glory has arrived
In Your presence God, I’m completely satisfied

For You I sing I dance
Rejoice in this divine romance
Lift my heart and my hands
To show my love, to show my love

A deep deep flood, an Ocean flows from You
Of deep deep love, yeah it’s filling up the room
Your innocent blood, has washed my guilty life
In Your presence God I’m completely satisfied

For You I sing I dance
Rejoice in this divine romance
Lift my heart and my hands
To show my love, to show my love

my mother's groundhog

For the past few months my mom has been stalking a groundhog. Yes, a groundhog. On her route to work there is a specific exit that she takes. This exit has a ramp that goes down and on the side has a big grassy hill. A while back she noticed a few burrows on this grassy hill. Now if you know my mother or have heard me talk about my mother then you know that she is interested in EVERYTHING! So of course, these lovely burrows interested her little mind and on her way to work she continued to watch these burrows for anything living in them. Finally one day she was sitting at the light on the exit ramp and saw, what she thought at the time, a hedgehog sitting at the top of the grassy hill. She flipped out! Seriously, my mother was fascinated by this creature and couldn't wait to get home and spend endless hours researching what she had just seen. My dad, my sister and I heard all about it--"it's just so cute!"--"I can't believe I found it!"--"I'm gonna get me a picture of it." She even had me drive to the exit for her so that she could get a picture of it!

After some extensive research on the ever faithful internet, my mom discovered that hedgehogs don't live in this area. So she ruled out that it was a hedgehog and decided it must be a groundhog. She looked up picture after picture of groundhogs and decided that this creature living the burrows off exit 12 was a groundhog. She continued to "visit" it hoping that she could catch a photo of it here and there. She even had people honking at her because she would stop in the middle of the road while the light was green just trying to get a picture of this groundhog.

So then I was home the other week and my mom told me that she had something to show me. So she gets out her computer and pulls up this picture of the groundhog that she has been stalking. She had took a photo of it but to me, this photo was blurry and not even zoomed in so in reality you couldn't really tell if there was a groundhog in it or not. She swore to me that it was there and even pointed to some blurry spot claiming that it was the groundhog. I just laughed and told her that she was funny.

Well, my mother ended up buying a new camera. (I think so she could get a better picture of this groundhog. But seriously, she got a new camera that has so many more megapixels so she can get a good picture of her groundhog. And yesterday, she sent it to me. This is the picture she took the other day of her little friend. Enjoy!

work, church, bethany d., philippines!

Good Morning!! (or good afternoon and good evening depending on when you read this :) ) There has been a lot going on so I hadn't really had time to post a new blog. After I came back from my mini vacation con mi familia, I had to work--booooo! Although it got interesting at the end of work that Wednesday. Someone in the house across the street from the church I work at died unexpectedly and so there was an ambulance, 2 police cars, a fire truck, and then the investigator people came to do their job. It was pretty intense because the whole neighborhood came out to see what was going on. All I found out though was that a thirty something man died unexpectedly. Made the work day interesting but was very sad at the same time...

I've been leading a small group of high school girls at church on Wednesdays and I am really enjoying it! This group of girls I have are so energetic and talkative. It's great! I thought I would have to pull stuff out of them. They're really asking questions too and soaking up what we're learning about. I do believe they're challenging me more than I'm challenging them. Love how God works like that :)

On Saturday night a group of us went to a Bethany Dillon concert for my friend's birthday. When I say concert, it was more like a little show. Acoustic Jeremiah in Canton, GA gets people to come and play in their historic chapel. Never heard of it, neither had I. Much less did I really know where Canton, GA was. Well we thought we were going to be late since we had stopped to eat on the way in Atlanta, but as Atlanta goes, there's always traffic you run into. So we were short on time plus we didn't really know where we were going. We finally get there (on time I might add) and find out we have front row, center seats. The guy in charge of this thing told me to tell him how many tickets I wanted and he'd hold them for me. And he did! Front row, center seats! Now, this chapel is really old (historic) and small. So basically we were sitting in Bethany's lap. She was that close. It was amazing! She played some new music, some old, some really old and then she played a few hymns. It was a great time of worship. Wish I had pictures to capture the moment but I don't. We also got stopped on the way back because someone, who will remain nameless, didn't have their seatbelt on. Good times!

In July I am going on a mission trip to the Philippines. I'm really excited about this opportunity God has given me and kind of surprised, yet not really cause it's God. I guess I'm just honored to be a part of His work. God has truly called me to this trip and it's been a blessing to see Him work already. A friend of mine is going to Ireland about the same time I'm going on my trip and we've been meeting to go through our guide packets together, share thoughts and fears and pray for one another. It's been good to be able to prepare for our trips and have that accountability and encouragement as God gets our hearts ready to be the light to others. I'm also very thankful for this friend. We haven't really been friends that long and so it's been a good opportunity to get to know her better. God's already used her in my life and I'm thankful for that. Please be in prayer for me as I get ready for this trip.

a life of complacency

I spent this past weekend and these past couple of days at home with my dad. I can't remember the last time my dad and I, just the two of us, spent time together. The past few years have been crazy with school, work and being 3 hours away that I haven't had as much time with my parents as I would have liked. Summers have usually been filled with trips, school and work, so this "mini-vacation" with my dad was great. My mom had a friend come in town and they went up to the mountains this week thus giving me time well spent with my father.

During my time at home, I remembered how simple things were when I was living there. No worries, cares, all my needs were met in the blink of an eye. Life was great and simple. To me, it was an abundant life. But as each year passes, I feel like things (life) become more complicated. I feel like I have more things to worry about and I care more about different things in life. Even meeting my own needs is sometimes a hassle in ways. Don't misunderstand me, all my needs have always been met and I have had worries before and deal with them as they come. It's just that now I'm in charge of these things when my parents use to take care of basically everything for me. I would rely on them and always knew they would take care of all aspects of my life.

Now, as I experience all that life has to offer, God has reminded me that I can still feel this same kind of simplicity and worry-free life that I once knew. But do I embrace it? Not always. You see, God has given me something that I can find rest in and be at peace with. Him. He allows me to put my trust in Him and let him be ruler over my life. This sounds easy, but I haven't mastered it at all. I don't even come close. As a child it was easy to let my parents take care of me and allow them to lead me and guide me. It was easy and almost natural. Why? Because they had proven their love to me and for me. They had proven that they would take care of me and always be there. In the same way, Christ has already proven his love for me and to me and has promised He will always be there and he continues to do this daily. So why is it sometimes so difficult for me to fully give up my life over to him so that I can experience this abundant life that I long for? I know all He is, is good. All He does is good.

The life that I once knew, the simple, worry-free, fully trusting life, isn't far from me or out of my reach. It is a choice. A daily, on my knees, offering of myself to God. It is only there that I will find rest and contentment.

Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

i did it!

I did it! That's right, I created a blog. Do I really know what I'm doing? No, I don't. But I figured I had some time this summer to try it out and see what it's all about. I love reading my friends blogs and learning about the things that are going on in their lives or the insight they give through a verse or a mini-sermon. It's been a great tool for keeping up with what people are doing these days and a good source of encouragement if it's the right blog! I've also found that they are so eloquent in their writing--a skill I obviously don't posses. Even right down to the name of their blogs--so creative! Some of you might know the meaning or reason behind the name of my blog. If you're wondering why I chose it, it's because this is my Indian name. "Dun-dush-ka" is the name that was given to me when I was born and it means Easter Lily. Yes, I am Native American. (So dramatic right!?) My father is a full-blooded indian and my mother, is well, "white" as we say here in the South. (ok, go ahead with the jokes or comments) My friends pick on me a lot about this--all in fun though! So this is it! My blog. Currently my life isn't all that interesting to write about but I'm giving it a go. We'll see what happens...