The last few days have had some ups and downs, but more ups than downs, so I can’t complain.
Let’s start with the ups. My house is CLEAN!!! The upstairs and first floor are pretty much spotless and I am SO EXCITED!! I’m also 99% finished organizing everything. I just need a few more drawers and storage things, and a cork/dry erase board and I will be ready to go. My basement is a different story however…
Actually, my basement is clean, except for one room…but that room is a disaster. I will get to that eventually though, I’m in no hurry.
The most exciting part about my house is that I am leaving tomorrow and I will be gone for about 10 days, so my house is going to stay clean!!! :)
I have also gotten a TON of other stuff done. I organized everything on my computer and I have Prayer Pals, Kids Club and all my personal finances together and organized. I still have plenty to do (newsletter, preparing for Kids Club, etc), but I am at a really good place to be able to get all that stuff done. I also cleaned my car, got it inspected and I am leaving in about an hour to get the kids’ school uniforms. The only thing left for me to do is a mountain of laundry. I will spend some quality time at the Laundromat tonight. :)
So, overall I am feeling great about everything and my to-do list is not nearly as intimidating. However, I have run into some email problems that are causing me some frustration. I can’t figure out what the problem is, and neither can the Verizon people. I can access my email, but only from their website, I can’t get any of it on my computer. I really don’t want to have to change my email address!!
I am also facing a situation actually similar to one I faced this time last year. There is a person who is upset with me about something but won’t talk to me about it. It is a very frustrating situation and I am again put in the position of just waiting until this person either talks to me or gets over it. It is also a somewhat embarrassing situation because several people know what is going on and are talking about it, although no one seems to know why this person is upset with me. I don’t like people being upset with me, especially when I have no idea why. There isn’t anything I can do about it though, oh well.
Actually, this person isn’t the only person that seems upset with me. I would say that I overall get the feeling that there are a good number of people upset or annoyed with me, or just don’t want me to be around. Good thing I am going out of town for 10 days! J I don’t know if it’s all in my head or not, so I guess all I can do is trust that people will talk to me if they need to. I try to be humble, I know I’m not perfect and I am aware that I make a lot of mistakes, hopefully people can give me the grace I need…even if I don’t deserve it.
Oh, and I caught a cold...what's that all about?!?
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Still Cleaning...
My upstairs is clean!! And when I say clean, I really mean clean!!! I rearranged everything, cleaned it better than it has ever been cleaned and organized my "office", so I am ready to go!! I even cleaned the bathroom like never before. I have a VERY small bathroom (I know you are picturing a small bathroom in your head right now...go smaller...keep going...smaller...there, that's about the size of my bathroom), but it took quite a while to clean it. I scrubbed every part of it, including the shower curtain liner, and it looks SO good!!!
I have moved onto the first floor and I hope to finish it before I head to my parents house on Friday, but I am not sure I will. I think I will get it pretty clean, but ideally I would like to move all my kitchen stuff back into my kitchen. However, most of my kitchen stuff is dispersed throughout my basement and I don't know that I will have the time to track it all down and put it in its correct place. I can survive for a while without all of it anyway.
In addition to cleaning a lot today I also managed to get the oil changed in my car, make an appointment to get it inspected, organize all the files and pictures on my computer and shop for some necessary items for my house. It was a pretty busy day, but a great one!!
Starting tomorrow I actually have a few things on my schedule outside of my house. I will be heading to Philadelphia Biblical University (PBU) tomorrow morning to try and recruit some college students to come and help us this fall with our ministries. I think I will be back around 2 or 3 from that, and I will spend the rest of the day cleaning and doing some laundry at the laundromat. On Thursday I am taking all my kids shopping for school uniforms which should be fun, and getting my car inspected. I will hopefully finish up cleaning and organizing my house on Thursday and head to VA either late that night or early in Friday. I am driving to South Boston, picking up my mom and then heading to Washington to spend the weekend there with my parents (and I am taking Gizmo with me!!). I am SO excited to get back to NC, and then to come home to a really clean house!!
(Did I mention that I just got another summons for jury duty? Its my 3rd time in 3 years. I'm not so excited about that...)
I have moved onto the first floor and I hope to finish it before I head to my parents house on Friday, but I am not sure I will. I think I will get it pretty clean, but ideally I would like to move all my kitchen stuff back into my kitchen. However, most of my kitchen stuff is dispersed throughout my basement and I don't know that I will have the time to track it all down and put it in its correct place. I can survive for a while without all of it anyway.
In addition to cleaning a lot today I also managed to get the oil changed in my car, make an appointment to get it inspected, organize all the files and pictures on my computer and shop for some necessary items for my house. It was a pretty busy day, but a great one!!
Starting tomorrow I actually have a few things on my schedule outside of my house. I will be heading to Philadelphia Biblical University (PBU) tomorrow morning to try and recruit some college students to come and help us this fall with our ministries. I think I will be back around 2 or 3 from that, and I will spend the rest of the day cleaning and doing some laundry at the laundromat. On Thursday I am taking all my kids shopping for school uniforms which should be fun, and getting my car inspected. I will hopefully finish up cleaning and organizing my house on Thursday and head to VA either late that night or early in Friday. I am driving to South Boston, picking up my mom and then heading to Washington to spend the weekend there with my parents (and I am taking Gizmo with me!!). I am SO excited to get back to NC, and then to come home to a really clean house!!
(Did I mention that I just got another summons for jury duty? Its my 3rd time in 3 years. I'm not so excited about that...)
Monday, September 3, 2007
Relaxing AND Productive!!
I have had a GREAT past few days!!! I know I could have been way more productive than I have been, but for the first time in a while I don't HAVE to be productive all the time, so I am choosing not to! :)
I spent most of the weekend by myself and I loved every second of it. I have spent a lot of time reading, in prayer, and watching TV. College football is here and that ALWAYS lifts my spirits!! I spent about 5 hours watching football on Saturday, including watching the greatest upset in college football history. Not only did I predict it, I got to watch it! It was so fun! And, of course the Hokies' win was also a highlight. I know it seems like a lot of TV, but if you know how much I love football, then you know how much of a blessing that was...and I know I won't get the chance to do that again anytime soon.
Also this weekend I decided to rearrange the upstairs of my house and try and do a real deep cleaning before the fall craziness starts. I have gotten a lot done, and thrown a TON of stuff away, but I still have quite a ways to go as well. I decided that since I will be working a lot in the fall, especially on my computer, that it wasn't a great idea for me to have my office in my bedroom. So, I have moved my desk and all of my "work" stuff out of my bed room and into the girls' room. There is still plenty of room for their bunk beds and dresser, and now I have my own work space. Its great!!!
Of course, right now the upstairs is still in the transition phase and is pretty much a disaster. I am planning on having it finished by tonight (hopefully!) and then I will move to the first floor...which is now a disaster as well. I am really enjoying all of this though...I get to work at my own pace with no one else's expectations on me. I LOVE IT!!!
I haven't gotten a lot of preparing done yet for Kids Club or anything like that, but I actually feel really good about where I am. I tend to come up with an idea whenever I have it and then just run with it. I think I will feel SO good about everything I have going on in the fall if my house is in order and I don't have to stress about that or live in a mess. I can handle the mess for now, but once I really get going the mess will really stress me out.
Church was fun yesterday and the teens did a great job sharing about the mission trip. I think the congregation was really challenged by them, which was our prayer. I caused some problems as I made a slide show, but couldn't burn it onto a DVD. So, we spent quite a while trying to get it all set up (I say we but it was mostly J and Frank via cell phone). We got it to work though, and it was great!! We had a lunch after church and it was fun hanging out with people. I also had Prayer Pals last night, and then went over to my friend Elizabeth's house to hang out with friends. It was my first time out of the house and with people in about 4 days! I had a lot of fun and didn't get home until after 1.
This blog was kind of my break from cleaning, but I need to get back to it. I am almost finished cleaning my bedroom and the girls' room/my office. I still have the bathroom and laundry room to go! Those rooms are still trashed from when my church was here, so its going to take a while to clean. I really hope I can get it all done tonight though!! I had planned on going home to visit my parents on Thursday, but I am slowly pushing that back. I still think I am going to go, but I'm thinking Friday or Saturday is now the goal. I just want my house clean!!
I spent most of the weekend by myself and I loved every second of it. I have spent a lot of time reading, in prayer, and watching TV. College football is here and that ALWAYS lifts my spirits!! I spent about 5 hours watching football on Saturday, including watching the greatest upset in college football history. Not only did I predict it, I got to watch it! It was so fun! And, of course the Hokies' win was also a highlight. I know it seems like a lot of TV, but if you know how much I love football, then you know how much of a blessing that was...and I know I won't get the chance to do that again anytime soon.
Also this weekend I decided to rearrange the upstairs of my house and try and do a real deep cleaning before the fall craziness starts. I have gotten a lot done, and thrown a TON of stuff away, but I still have quite a ways to go as well. I decided that since I will be working a lot in the fall, especially on my computer, that it wasn't a great idea for me to have my office in my bedroom. So, I have moved my desk and all of my "work" stuff out of my bed room and into the girls' room. There is still plenty of room for their bunk beds and dresser, and now I have my own work space. Its great!!!
Of course, right now the upstairs is still in the transition phase and is pretty much a disaster. I am planning on having it finished by tonight (hopefully!) and then I will move to the first floor...which is now a disaster as well. I am really enjoying all of this though...I get to work at my own pace with no one else's expectations on me. I LOVE IT!!!
I haven't gotten a lot of preparing done yet for Kids Club or anything like that, but I actually feel really good about where I am. I tend to come up with an idea whenever I have it and then just run with it. I think I will feel SO good about everything I have going on in the fall if my house is in order and I don't have to stress about that or live in a mess. I can handle the mess for now, but once I really get going the mess will really stress me out.
Church was fun yesterday and the teens did a great job sharing about the mission trip. I think the congregation was really challenged by them, which was our prayer. I caused some problems as I made a slide show, but couldn't burn it onto a DVD. So, we spent quite a while trying to get it all set up (I say we but it was mostly J and Frank via cell phone). We got it to work though, and it was great!! We had a lunch after church and it was fun hanging out with people. I also had Prayer Pals last night, and then went over to my friend Elizabeth's house to hang out with friends. It was my first time out of the house and with people in about 4 days! I had a lot of fun and didn't get home until after 1.
This blog was kind of my break from cleaning, but I need to get back to it. I am almost finished cleaning my bedroom and the girls' room/my office. I still have the bathroom and laundry room to go! Those rooms are still trashed from when my church was here, so its going to take a while to clean. I really hope I can get it all done tonight though!! I had planned on going home to visit my parents on Thursday, but I am slowly pushing that back. I still think I am going to go, but I'm thinking Friday or Saturday is now the goal. I just want my house clean!!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
And The Mood Ring Says...Mixed Emotions
Okay, I have to start this post with something funny. My mom called me yesterday to inform me that I had spelled Philadelphia wrong in the title of my blog. I have had this blog for close to a year now and no one has noticed, or if they have they didn't say anything. I certainly didn't notice! I'm excited to see my mom is finally reading this thing, and keeping me accountable with my spelling. :) Thanks mom!!! (I have fixed the misspelling, fyi, so don't go looking for it now, haha)
I am back from staff retreat and I am SO excited to be home!!! I'm going to bed soon (in my OWN bed!) and I will wake up tomorrow whenever I wake up! And, I don't have ANYTHING on my to do list for the day! I am SO EXCITED!!! I do have plenty of things to do, but nothing is pressing. I think I will pretend I'm not in town so I can just do whatever I want. Maybe I'll read a book...maybe I'll watch a movie...maybe I'll go for a run...who knows??? I'll decide tomorrow!!
So, to explain a little about the title of this post...on the way back from the mission trip one of the teens, L, had a mood ring and we all took turns putting it on and seeing what mood we were in. For some reason that entertained us for hours. I don't have the mood ring but I am experiencing a variety of emotions so I thought I would be creative with the title of this post. Of course, the only people that would really get it are the people that don't read this blog...but oh well!
Staff retreat has left me in a state of mixed emotions. I will try to explain, but as usual I make no promises of making sense. Overall it was a good retreat. I really enjoyed my time with the girls and although they added to my responsibility while there, it was worth it. They make me laugh and smile a lot. The 3 of us have been together for 5 years now and there is an incredible level of comfortably with us. I know them, they know me. We love each other, we annoy each other. We make mistakes, we forgive, we challenge and we grow. Its hard, but its wonderful.
I had fun with the staff as well. I got to the retreat on time (for the first year ever, haha) and enjoyed hanging out with some of the staff in a relaxed low key environment. Our first meeting as a staff went well as we all shared how our summers went. It was encouraging to hear some awesome things that God did in and through each of us this summer, but it was difficult to hear some of the struggles everyone faced...mostly being overworked and not getting enough time with family. Overall, though, we were all encouraged by what God had done. In fact, this time last year we were making a long list of mistakes we had made, and this summer that list was much shorter. Praise God!
We only had 2 more meetings as a staff over the course of the retreat and they were good as well. We spent a lot of time this morning in prayer and I was VERY encouraged, uplifted and motivated as I felt the Spirit of God rest amongst us. I was most encouraged to watch all of us just enjoy one another and everyone be excited about the upcoming year.
Now for the hard stuff. I feel more alone now than ever before. Carisa has had an EXTREMELY difficult summer...and that comes after a pretty difficult spring and fall. In fact, I would say that the last year has been one of the hardest of her life. (Ironically, it has been one of the hardest for me as well, although in a very different way). Anyway, she has continued to work in full time ministry accomplishing things that would blow your mind, all while raising a wonderful and rambunctious 1 year old, homeshooling an equally wonderful and very strong willed 5 year old, mentoring/supporting/mothering a beautiful and hurting 17 year old girl that isn't even her own, and supporting a very hard working and in demand (but also very supportive and loving) husband. How in the world she survived can only be attributed to the supernatural strength of God. However, it is time for her to rest. So, she is stepping out of all ministry for at least the next 4 months. It is absolutely needed, deserved, and a part of God's plan.
Now, I am alone in everything that I do. I came on staff specifically to work along side Carisa and almost exactly 2 years to the day that I came on staff, Carisa steps down. And now I am alone. Before I go on, I want to make it clear that every role I am taking on in the fall is a role I feel called to. I do NOT feel pushed or manipulated into it, I know God is leading me to it. That doesn't mean I really like it though...
After Carisa made her announcement (and my heart broke for her), I immediately told God I would not take over her job as leader of Kids Club. I have said that before (you can actually read it in previous blog posts), but God had another plan in mind (don't ever tell God never...He doesn't like that word, haha). After some discussion it was decided that Denise (a wonderful woman who leads Sunday School and Children's Church) and I would co-lead Kids Club this fall. I also decided that I would take over her Prayer Pals. I decided a while ago that I would not be running after-school in the fall, so that frees up a lot of my time to be able to take on these new responsibilities. I will be helping with teen after-school tutoring, but it isn't a program and I am not in charge of it by myself, so I don't think it will be too bad.
One of the reasons that I wanted Bonita and Linda to come on the staff retreat was so I could feel more connected to the staff. It is a family retreat and I thought if I had somewhat of a family around I wouldn't feel as out of place. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. I actually felt 100% more connected last year when the single people were allowed to be single and the families were allowed to be families. This year most of the conversations were (as usual) about children and families, and I (as usual) had no input. Occasionally conversation would drift to the "old days", of which I was not a part, so I just listened a lot. I enjoyed having Bonita and Linda as a distraction, but I felt very disconnected from the staff.
Another thing that has always kept me connected was Carisa. I am now the only woman on full time, support raised staff at the church. I never wanted that, I don't like that. I know its not PC to say that I don't like God's plan, but I'm just being honest...right now I just don't like it.
I am so frustrated with doing things alone...with being alone...I could just scream. I have been thinking about Joseph for the last few days and wondering what he thought as he sat in prison...time after time. His brothers sell him into slavery but he works his way out of that. Then, when faced with the temptation of lust he runs away, only to be put in jail. Seriously Lord?!? From there he is able to interpret dreams for other people who are in jail with him, and they promise to talk to the Pharaoh for him and get him out of jail. But, they forget and he stays in jail. Are you kidding me God?!? Then, he finally gets out of jail, works really hard, follows God...and is still faced with having to forgive the people that caused him all that hardship in the first place. For the Love!!! I know Joseph stayed faithful, trusted God and followed Him every step of the way...but he couldn't have been happy about everything that happened to him, right?
Throughout every good and bad thing that happened to Joseph, the Word says that God was with him, there was never a doubt that God was in the midst of everything that Joseph faced. Joseph was in prison for 2 years before the cup bearer that promised to get him out of jail remembered his promise. Do you think there was ever a time when Joseph got frustrated? I believe that Joseph trusted completely in God's plan and ultimately desired for God's will to be done in his life...but was he always happy with the direction God was taking him?
I am not. I 100% trust in God's plan, will follow God's plan and in the deepest part of my heart I desire this over anything else that I could be given. If given the choice between God's plan for my life (no matter how difficult), or an easier road where I might know God but not experience Him the way I do now...I would ABSOLUTELY choose the road I am on. Still...I'm not always happy about the direction that road takes me. I don't like where I have to walk right now...I especially don't like that I have to walk it alone. I hate that I am walking it alone.
Joseph had a dream when he was young where he saw his brothers bowing down before him. He knew how his story would end, or at least he had an idea. I don't know if he remembered the dream his whole life, but God told him from the very beginning how his story would end. I don't know how my story will end...I like knowing the ending. I am the girl that reads the last chapter of the book to decide if the book is worth reading. If I don't like the ending, I won't read the book. Life is a challenge for me.
I have also been thinking about Hosea. He was commanded by God to love and be faithful to a women who would not do the same for him. Time and time again the wife that Hosea loved would leave him for other men. How could Hosea accept such a thing?!? That was God's plan for him!!! Hosea and Joseph were so much more faithful than I will ever be...
I am excited about the challenges that I will face in the upcoming year. I am especially excited that I know this is completely from God. Every challenge I have ever faced has brought me closer to God and burned away more of my flesh and made me more like Him...and Lord knows (as do all of you), I have plenty of flesh left to burn away. A ridiculous amount in fact. I LOVE that God does that. I don't like how He does it.
You will probably laugh at me in a few months...no matter how wonderful or challenging (or both) this fall is, I KNOW that God will be all up in that (haha) and I will not regret a second of it. That's the way the last 5 years have been (okay, the last 27 years) and I have no reason to think this will be different. God is good. All the time.
"Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them." ~Hosea 14:9
Lord, please don't let me stumble!!!!
I am back from staff retreat and I am SO excited to be home!!! I'm going to bed soon (in my OWN bed!) and I will wake up tomorrow whenever I wake up! And, I don't have ANYTHING on my to do list for the day! I am SO EXCITED!!! I do have plenty of things to do, but nothing is pressing. I think I will pretend I'm not in town so I can just do whatever I want. Maybe I'll read a book...maybe I'll watch a movie...maybe I'll go for a run...who knows??? I'll decide tomorrow!!
So, to explain a little about the title of this post...on the way back from the mission trip one of the teens, L, had a mood ring and we all took turns putting it on and seeing what mood we were in. For some reason that entertained us for hours. I don't have the mood ring but I am experiencing a variety of emotions so I thought I would be creative with the title of this post. Of course, the only people that would really get it are the people that don't read this blog...but oh well!
Staff retreat has left me in a state of mixed emotions. I will try to explain, but as usual I make no promises of making sense. Overall it was a good retreat. I really enjoyed my time with the girls and although they added to my responsibility while there, it was worth it. They make me laugh and smile a lot. The 3 of us have been together for 5 years now and there is an incredible level of comfortably with us. I know them, they know me. We love each other, we annoy each other. We make mistakes, we forgive, we challenge and we grow. Its hard, but its wonderful.
I had fun with the staff as well. I got to the retreat on time (for the first year ever, haha) and enjoyed hanging out with some of the staff in a relaxed low key environment. Our first meeting as a staff went well as we all shared how our summers went. It was encouraging to hear some awesome things that God did in and through each of us this summer, but it was difficult to hear some of the struggles everyone faced...mostly being overworked and not getting enough time with family. Overall, though, we were all encouraged by what God had done. In fact, this time last year we were making a long list of mistakes we had made, and this summer that list was much shorter. Praise God!
We only had 2 more meetings as a staff over the course of the retreat and they were good as well. We spent a lot of time this morning in prayer and I was VERY encouraged, uplifted and motivated as I felt the Spirit of God rest amongst us. I was most encouraged to watch all of us just enjoy one another and everyone be excited about the upcoming year.
Now for the hard stuff. I feel more alone now than ever before. Carisa has had an EXTREMELY difficult summer...and that comes after a pretty difficult spring and fall. In fact, I would say that the last year has been one of the hardest of her life. (Ironically, it has been one of the hardest for me as well, although in a very different way). Anyway, she has continued to work in full time ministry accomplishing things that would blow your mind, all while raising a wonderful and rambunctious 1 year old, homeshooling an equally wonderful and very strong willed 5 year old, mentoring/supporting/mothering a beautiful and hurting 17 year old girl that isn't even her own, and supporting a very hard working and in demand (but also very supportive and loving) husband. How in the world she survived can only be attributed to the supernatural strength of God. However, it is time for her to rest. So, she is stepping out of all ministry for at least the next 4 months. It is absolutely needed, deserved, and a part of God's plan.
Now, I am alone in everything that I do. I came on staff specifically to work along side Carisa and almost exactly 2 years to the day that I came on staff, Carisa steps down. And now I am alone. Before I go on, I want to make it clear that every role I am taking on in the fall is a role I feel called to. I do NOT feel pushed or manipulated into it, I know God is leading me to it. That doesn't mean I really like it though...
After Carisa made her announcement (and my heart broke for her), I immediately told God I would not take over her job as leader of Kids Club. I have said that before (you can actually read it in previous blog posts), but God had another plan in mind (don't ever tell God never...He doesn't like that word, haha). After some discussion it was decided that Denise (a wonderful woman who leads Sunday School and Children's Church) and I would co-lead Kids Club this fall. I also decided that I would take over her Prayer Pals. I decided a while ago that I would not be running after-school in the fall, so that frees up a lot of my time to be able to take on these new responsibilities. I will be helping with teen after-school tutoring, but it isn't a program and I am not in charge of it by myself, so I don't think it will be too bad.
One of the reasons that I wanted Bonita and Linda to come on the staff retreat was so I could feel more connected to the staff. It is a family retreat and I thought if I had somewhat of a family around I wouldn't feel as out of place. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. I actually felt 100% more connected last year when the single people were allowed to be single and the families were allowed to be families. This year most of the conversations were (as usual) about children and families, and I (as usual) had no input. Occasionally conversation would drift to the "old days", of which I was not a part, so I just listened a lot. I enjoyed having Bonita and Linda as a distraction, but I felt very disconnected from the staff.
Another thing that has always kept me connected was Carisa. I am now the only woman on full time, support raised staff at the church. I never wanted that, I don't like that. I know its not PC to say that I don't like God's plan, but I'm just being honest...right now I just don't like it.
I am so frustrated with doing things alone...with being alone...I could just scream. I have been thinking about Joseph for the last few days and wondering what he thought as he sat in prison...time after time. His brothers sell him into slavery but he works his way out of that. Then, when faced with the temptation of lust he runs away, only to be put in jail. Seriously Lord?!? From there he is able to interpret dreams for other people who are in jail with him, and they promise to talk to the Pharaoh for him and get him out of jail. But, they forget and he stays in jail. Are you kidding me God?!? Then, he finally gets out of jail, works really hard, follows God...and is still faced with having to forgive the people that caused him all that hardship in the first place. For the Love!!! I know Joseph stayed faithful, trusted God and followed Him every step of the way...but he couldn't have been happy about everything that happened to him, right?
Throughout every good and bad thing that happened to Joseph, the Word says that God was with him, there was never a doubt that God was in the midst of everything that Joseph faced. Joseph was in prison for 2 years before the cup bearer that promised to get him out of jail remembered his promise. Do you think there was ever a time when Joseph got frustrated? I believe that Joseph trusted completely in God's plan and ultimately desired for God's will to be done in his life...but was he always happy with the direction God was taking him?
I am not. I 100% trust in God's plan, will follow God's plan and in the deepest part of my heart I desire this over anything else that I could be given. If given the choice between God's plan for my life (no matter how difficult), or an easier road where I might know God but not experience Him the way I do now...I would ABSOLUTELY choose the road I am on. Still...I'm not always happy about the direction that road takes me. I don't like where I have to walk right now...I especially don't like that I have to walk it alone. I hate that I am walking it alone.
Joseph had a dream when he was young where he saw his brothers bowing down before him. He knew how his story would end, or at least he had an idea. I don't know if he remembered the dream his whole life, but God told him from the very beginning how his story would end. I don't know how my story will end...I like knowing the ending. I am the girl that reads the last chapter of the book to decide if the book is worth reading. If I don't like the ending, I won't read the book. Life is a challenge for me.
I have also been thinking about Hosea. He was commanded by God to love and be faithful to a women who would not do the same for him. Time and time again the wife that Hosea loved would leave him for other men. How could Hosea accept such a thing?!? That was God's plan for him!!! Hosea and Joseph were so much more faithful than I will ever be...
I am excited about the challenges that I will face in the upcoming year. I am especially excited that I know this is completely from God. Every challenge I have ever faced has brought me closer to God and burned away more of my flesh and made me more like Him...and Lord knows (as do all of you), I have plenty of flesh left to burn away. A ridiculous amount in fact. I LOVE that God does that. I don't like how He does it.
You will probably laugh at me in a few months...no matter how wonderful or challenging (or both) this fall is, I KNOW that God will be all up in that (haha) and I will not regret a second of it. That's the way the last 5 years have been (okay, the last 27 years) and I have no reason to think this will be different. God is good. All the time.
"Who is wise? He will realize these things. Who is discerning? He will understand them. The ways of the LORD are right; the righteous walk in them, but the rebellious stumble in them." ~Hosea 14:9
Lord, please don't let me stumble!!!!
Sunday, August 26, 2007
So much to say...so little time!
I'm home!! At least for the next 16 hours...
How to sum up the mission trip...it was the hardest trip we have had yet, but it was the best. There were SO many ups and downs, but overall it was amazing. And personally, I feel really great! This is the first time I have come back from a mission trip feeling excited and happy with myself. I was far from perfect on this trip, but I learned a lot, feel like I have grown a lot and I am excited to see where God is going to take the teens now that we are back. Thank you Jesus!!!
I am trying to think of the best way to share everything and I feel like I am going to be all over the place. I'm going to try though! I'm not going to go day by day, I'll go activity by activity.
First, you have to know that the trip consisted of 18 teens...14 guys and 4 girls. The leadership consisted of 4 guys and 2 girls and a couple that came as our cooks for the week (and were an INCREDIBLE blessing!). Each of the leaders had a team of teens that they worked with for the week. Since there were only 6 girls total (including leaders) we were our own team. I was a bit worried about that at first, but it turned out to be AMAZING!! We had almost no issues with the girls all week and they blew me away with their joy, love, enthusiasm and servants hearts. This was the hottest week of the year and there was NOT A SINGLE complaint from the girls, even when we had kitchen duty on the biggest cooking day of the week. They were SO GREAT!!! All week everyone commented on how amazing they were...what a blessing!
We spent our mornings doing work projects around the church, and everyone worked SO hard! We got a ton of projects done around the church and for the most part we had little complaining. (We have some younger teens that caused some problems, but the older ones were great at encouraging them toward the right attitude).
At 11 every day several teams (we rotated each day) went to host "PrimeTime", and hour of fun pouring into kids that were specifically invited. The first day we had about 10 kids, but by Thursday we had 25! During that hour we taught the kids how to juggle (which I actually learned to do by the end of the week!), make balloon animals, stack cups (I hold the record for the fasted 6 stack!), and learn the miachi, which is kind of like hacky sack (I never got that down at all). The kids that came were a lot younger than we expected, but they had fun hanging out with us even if they didn't quite get what we were trying to teach them.
At 12 the PrimeTime kids ate lunch with us and then came to VBS at 1. Other kids came to VBS as well and while we had a small crowd on Tuesday, we were up to over 30 kids by Thursday. I have to say that VBS was one of the biggest highlights of the week for me. The teens BLEW ME AWAY with how they ran things. The volunteered to be in charge of different parts of VBS (leading songs, doing the bible story, the memory verse, crafts, games, name tags, and so on) and each part was INCREDIBLE! And, they got better every day!! The skits were creative and very well thought out and performed, the song leaders were amazingly enthusiastic, the memory verse team was fun, creative and very clear in their explanations of the verses, the crafts went great and the game guys were so creative with their games!! All of the leaders were SO IMPRESSED! Thursday was the biggest day where we presented the gospel and gave and invitation to the kids and it was by far the best day of VBS. We really encouraged the teens to dig deep and give it their all, and they gave even more than that. It was...indescribable.
Since our days went from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. non stop every day we spent most evenings showering and hanging out and then doing some worship and devotions at night. One night we decided to head to the park to do some outreach and a lot of the teens had some good conversations with some guys from the neighborhood. Basketball seems to be a great ministry tool! The guys ended up playing basketball several times this week after VBS and before dinner, but that was the girls' scheduled shower time so I didn't see any of it, but I heard a lot about it. It was really nice to have that time with just the girls at the church, and it was even nicer to get to shower after sweating all day, haha.
Friday we hosted a big block party, which we had done last year as well. Last year's block party was a huge success, but this year was even better!!! We took our time in the morning (we were all pretty tired from the week), but at 1:30 we kicked into high gear and didn't stop until the party was over around 7:00. While many of us were taking it easy in the morning, several of the guys volunteered to go on the roof and silver coat it before the block party. It was over 100 degrees outside and apparently silver coating is pretty intense work, but all of the guys came off the roof with smiles on their faces and excited for the rest of the day. I'm telling you, some of these guys just blew me away!!!
Okay, so the block party was a lot of fun and a huge success. Tons of people from the neighborhood came out and had a blast. We had carnival games with prizes, a dunk tank, 2 moon bounces, music and a clear Gospel presentation. I was again blown away by the servants' hearts that these teens have. Even the ones that were giving us some problems throughout the week always pulled it together for VBS and the block party. God is so amazing!
Saturday was our day off and we surprised the teens with a trip to Kings Dominion (an amusement park). We decided to let them free in the park without having to have a leader with them, which ended up leaving several us leaders together throughout the day without many teens...and I personally had a blast!!! We got there at 11, went in and rode some ride and then met up outside the park at 12:30 for lunch. I started the day with Andy, Joy and some of my favorite teens (several of the girls, Q and E). One of them, E, had promised to ride a roller coaster with me so we decided to start with the flight of fear. It sounds much scarier than it is and was a good coaster to start with. E loved it and then we headed to the Volcano, the best ride at Kings Dominion. E was extremely nervous to get on the ride but afterward yelled, "I love roller coasters!". The line for the Volcano made us a bit late for lunch, but not too bad. After lunch I ended up with Joy, J, Frank and 2 of the girl teens. Most of the rest of our group wanted to spend a good amount of time in the water park while we wanted to ride roller coasters. Brooke also came up for the day along with several of my friends from my home church and I got to spend most of the day with them as well. It was SO GREAT!!! I really enjoyed the day and especially the people I got to spend it with. We all met up at 6:30 to go home and it sounds like everyone had a blast. We were pretty exhausted though.
We headed back to the church, ate dinner, had some free time and then started our evening worship. We were all SO exhausted by the time worship started and none of us were sure how it would go. J was pretty much done by that point (he worked so hard all week...he and Frank are often in charge of things that no one else can do and while they handle it well, I know it can't be easy), but the Spirit of God completely took over. We ended up praying and worshipping for quite a while and even took communion together which was really powerful. We didn't get to bed until well after midnight and had to get up at 7:30 a.m. to pack up and get ready for church. I am so impressed with the teens that pushed through and let God lead them last night!
So, today was our final day. We led the church's worship service and had a ton of kids from VBS show up to say goodbye, which was amazing. We headed out around 1:30, but because of traffic got home around 7.
Okay, so my overall thoughts from the week...there were some teens that I was hugely disappointed with. Some of them really showed their true colors and they turned out not to be who I thought they were, and it broke my heart. I really struggled with this at times throughout the week (not only because they were causing some problems with the other teens but also because I love them and it was hard to see their hearts so hardened). However, J and I had a conversation one night where God showed me that as hard as it is to see these teens struggle, I am glad that our eyes have been opened. I think God showed us these struggles so that we can help these teens grow through them. It wouldn't do them any good for us to be deceived. We have been enlightened to their struggles and we are going to help them push through those.
On the other side, there were some teens that just blew me away. L, the youngest girl on the trip, was almost unrecognizable. Last year on the mission trip we could barely get her to talk in public and this year she was running around at VBS as a superhero and sharing at church about Jesus being the only way to heaven. She was awesome!! E, one of the older guys, was a joy to be around all week and served exactly how I picture Christ did. He was always smiling, always encouraging and worshipping every night with all of his heart. He was a highlight for all of us.
Then there is L and M (both girls), cousins who are usually not so much fun to be around. L tends to complain (a lot) and M seems to be negative, a lot. Not on this trip!!! L didn't complain once and M was always smiling, happy and serving without complaint. I LOVED being around them all week!!!!! L even hurt her ankle on Wednesday night and was limping for several days but still participated in everything, and smiled and laughed through all of it. M had to go to the hospital in Friday night because of an asthma attack, but kept smiling and laughing through it all...and she didn't complain at all either!
And then there is the leadership team. Its pretty much the same team we have on all the trips, but this year was by far the best for us. I felt unified with them and supported by them every step of the way. Since most of them were guys, they had to deal with a lot of the issues we faced throughout the week and I am still in awe of the patience, love, and understanding they all displayed while still being firm and doing what needed to be done. J and Frank especially went way beyond what they thought they were capable of and really let God use them incredibly all week. It was also a huge blessing to have Joy with us this year. I was a little worried about having 2 female leaders for only 4 girls, but Joy's incredible humility and servant's heart made the trip so amazing for me. She really freed me up to be able to do what I needed to without feeling overwhelmed. This was probably the hardest year to be a leader in terms of the issues we faced with the teens, but the best year we have had as a leadership team.
I am pretty sure this was Frank's last year leading the trip and I honestly don't know if we will have one next year. He has been AMAZING at planning, organizing and leading the trips each year and I just can't imagine anyone being able to accomplish the things that he has done. We'll see what happens, but I am not ready to think about trying to do this without him...unless maybe Carisa comes along, haha.
Now I am off to the laundromat to wash my clothes and get packed for staff retreat. We leave tomorrow at noon and I will get back on Wednesday just in time for Prayer Pals. I am pretty excited about staff retreat, mostly because Bonita and Linda are coming, but I am also looking forward to Thursday. I plan on relaxing all day and cleaning my house (I sort of trashed it while packing for the mission trip...and it was really clean to begin with, haha). So, you won't hear from me again for a while. I miss Gizmo! :)
(for some reason I am having a hard time adding pictures to this post right now, so I will try again later!)
How to sum up the mission trip...it was the hardest trip we have had yet, but it was the best. There were SO many ups and downs, but overall it was amazing. And personally, I feel really great! This is the first time I have come back from a mission trip feeling excited and happy with myself. I was far from perfect on this trip, but I learned a lot, feel like I have grown a lot and I am excited to see where God is going to take the teens now that we are back. Thank you Jesus!!!
I am trying to think of the best way to share everything and I feel like I am going to be all over the place. I'm going to try though! I'm not going to go day by day, I'll go activity by activity.
First, you have to know that the trip consisted of 18 teens...14 guys and 4 girls. The leadership consisted of 4 guys and 2 girls and a couple that came as our cooks for the week (and were an INCREDIBLE blessing!). Each of the leaders had a team of teens that they worked with for the week. Since there were only 6 girls total (including leaders) we were our own team. I was a bit worried about that at first, but it turned out to be AMAZING!! We had almost no issues with the girls all week and they blew me away with their joy, love, enthusiasm and servants hearts. This was the hottest week of the year and there was NOT A SINGLE complaint from the girls, even when we had kitchen duty on the biggest cooking day of the week. They were SO GREAT!!! All week everyone commented on how amazing they were...what a blessing!
We spent our mornings doing work projects around the church, and everyone worked SO hard! We got a ton of projects done around the church and for the most part we had little complaining. (We have some younger teens that caused some problems, but the older ones were great at encouraging them toward the right attitude).
At 11 every day several teams (we rotated each day) went to host "PrimeTime", and hour of fun pouring into kids that were specifically invited. The first day we had about 10 kids, but by Thursday we had 25! During that hour we taught the kids how to juggle (which I actually learned to do by the end of the week!), make balloon animals, stack cups (I hold the record for the fasted 6 stack!), and learn the miachi, which is kind of like hacky sack (I never got that down at all). The kids that came were a lot younger than we expected, but they had fun hanging out with us even if they didn't quite get what we were trying to teach them.
At 12 the PrimeTime kids ate lunch with us and then came to VBS at 1. Other kids came to VBS as well and while we had a small crowd on Tuesday, we were up to over 30 kids by Thursday. I have to say that VBS was one of the biggest highlights of the week for me. The teens BLEW ME AWAY with how they ran things. The volunteered to be in charge of different parts of VBS (leading songs, doing the bible story, the memory verse, crafts, games, name tags, and so on) and each part was INCREDIBLE! And, they got better every day!! The skits were creative and very well thought out and performed, the song leaders were amazingly enthusiastic, the memory verse team was fun, creative and very clear in their explanations of the verses, the crafts went great and the game guys were so creative with their games!! All of the leaders were SO IMPRESSED! Thursday was the biggest day where we presented the gospel and gave and invitation to the kids and it was by far the best day of VBS. We really encouraged the teens to dig deep and give it their all, and they gave even more than that. It was...indescribable.
Since our days went from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. non stop every day we spent most evenings showering and hanging out and then doing some worship and devotions at night. One night we decided to head to the park to do some outreach and a lot of the teens had some good conversations with some guys from the neighborhood. Basketball seems to be a great ministry tool! The guys ended up playing basketball several times this week after VBS and before dinner, but that was the girls' scheduled shower time so I didn't see any of it, but I heard a lot about it. It was really nice to have that time with just the girls at the church, and it was even nicer to get to shower after sweating all day, haha.
Friday we hosted a big block party, which we had done last year as well. Last year's block party was a huge success, but this year was even better!!! We took our time in the morning (we were all pretty tired from the week), but at 1:30 we kicked into high gear and didn't stop until the party was over around 7:00. While many of us were taking it easy in the morning, several of the guys volunteered to go on the roof and silver coat it before the block party. It was over 100 degrees outside and apparently silver coating is pretty intense work, but all of the guys came off the roof with smiles on their faces and excited for the rest of the day. I'm telling you, some of these guys just blew me away!!!
Okay, so the block party was a lot of fun and a huge success. Tons of people from the neighborhood came out and had a blast. We had carnival games with prizes, a dunk tank, 2 moon bounces, music and a clear Gospel presentation. I was again blown away by the servants' hearts that these teens have. Even the ones that were giving us some problems throughout the week always pulled it together for VBS and the block party. God is so amazing!
Saturday was our day off and we surprised the teens with a trip to Kings Dominion (an amusement park). We decided to let them free in the park without having to have a leader with them, which ended up leaving several us leaders together throughout the day without many teens...and I personally had a blast!!! We got there at 11, went in and rode some ride and then met up outside the park at 12:30 for lunch. I started the day with Andy, Joy and some of my favorite teens (several of the girls, Q and E). One of them, E, had promised to ride a roller coaster with me so we decided to start with the flight of fear. It sounds much scarier than it is and was a good coaster to start with. E loved it and then we headed to the Volcano, the best ride at Kings Dominion. E was extremely nervous to get on the ride but afterward yelled, "I love roller coasters!". The line for the Volcano made us a bit late for lunch, but not too bad. After lunch I ended up with Joy, J, Frank and 2 of the girl teens. Most of the rest of our group wanted to spend a good amount of time in the water park while we wanted to ride roller coasters. Brooke also came up for the day along with several of my friends from my home church and I got to spend most of the day with them as well. It was SO GREAT!!! I really enjoyed the day and especially the people I got to spend it with. We all met up at 6:30 to go home and it sounds like everyone had a blast. We were pretty exhausted though.
We headed back to the church, ate dinner, had some free time and then started our evening worship. We were all SO exhausted by the time worship started and none of us were sure how it would go. J was pretty much done by that point (he worked so hard all week...he and Frank are often in charge of things that no one else can do and while they handle it well, I know it can't be easy), but the Spirit of God completely took over. We ended up praying and worshipping for quite a while and even took communion together which was really powerful. We didn't get to bed until well after midnight and had to get up at 7:30 a.m. to pack up and get ready for church. I am so impressed with the teens that pushed through and let God lead them last night!
So, today was our final day. We led the church's worship service and had a ton of kids from VBS show up to say goodbye, which was amazing. We headed out around 1:30, but because of traffic got home around 7.
Okay, so my overall thoughts from the week...there were some teens that I was hugely disappointed with. Some of them really showed their true colors and they turned out not to be who I thought they were, and it broke my heart. I really struggled with this at times throughout the week (not only because they were causing some problems with the other teens but also because I love them and it was hard to see their hearts so hardened). However, J and I had a conversation one night where God showed me that as hard as it is to see these teens struggle, I am glad that our eyes have been opened. I think God showed us these struggles so that we can help these teens grow through them. It wouldn't do them any good for us to be deceived. We have been enlightened to their struggles and we are going to help them push through those.
On the other side, there were some teens that just blew me away. L, the youngest girl on the trip, was almost unrecognizable. Last year on the mission trip we could barely get her to talk in public and this year she was running around at VBS as a superhero and sharing at church about Jesus being the only way to heaven. She was awesome!! E, one of the older guys, was a joy to be around all week and served exactly how I picture Christ did. He was always smiling, always encouraging and worshipping every night with all of his heart. He was a highlight for all of us.
Then there is L and M (both girls), cousins who are usually not so much fun to be around. L tends to complain (a lot) and M seems to be negative, a lot. Not on this trip!!! L didn't complain once and M was always smiling, happy and serving without complaint. I LOVED being around them all week!!!!! L even hurt her ankle on Wednesday night and was limping for several days but still participated in everything, and smiled and laughed through all of it. M had to go to the hospital in Friday night because of an asthma attack, but kept smiling and laughing through it all...and she didn't complain at all either!
And then there is the leadership team. Its pretty much the same team we have on all the trips, but this year was by far the best for us. I felt unified with them and supported by them every step of the way. Since most of them were guys, they had to deal with a lot of the issues we faced throughout the week and I am still in awe of the patience, love, and understanding they all displayed while still being firm and doing what needed to be done. J and Frank especially went way beyond what they thought they were capable of and really let God use them incredibly all week. It was also a huge blessing to have Joy with us this year. I was a little worried about having 2 female leaders for only 4 girls, but Joy's incredible humility and servant's heart made the trip so amazing for me. She really freed me up to be able to do what I needed to without feeling overwhelmed. This was probably the hardest year to be a leader in terms of the issues we faced with the teens, but the best year we have had as a leadership team.
I am pretty sure this was Frank's last year leading the trip and I honestly don't know if we will have one next year. He has been AMAZING at planning, organizing and leading the trips each year and I just can't imagine anyone being able to accomplish the things that he has done. We'll see what happens, but I am not ready to think about trying to do this without him...unless maybe Carisa comes along, haha.
Now I am off to the laundromat to wash my clothes and get packed for staff retreat. We leave tomorrow at noon and I will get back on Wednesday just in time for Prayer Pals. I am pretty excited about staff retreat, mostly because Bonita and Linda are coming, but I am also looking forward to Thursday. I plan on relaxing all day and cleaning my house (I sort of trashed it while packing for the mission trip...and it was really clean to begin with, haha). So, you won't hear from me again for a while. I miss Gizmo! :)
(for some reason I am having a hard time adding pictures to this post right now, so I will try again later!)
Monday, August 20, 2007
Off to VA!!
Well, last night's mission trip meeting went MUCH better than last week's, so we are going on the mission trip!! Actually, there was never really any danger of it being cancelled, that was all just dreaming on my part, haha. After last night, though, I am actually excited to be going!!
Yesterday was an insane day. I went to Sunday School and then church, dropped the kids off at home, went shopping for VBS, immediately picked the girls back up and headed to T's birthday party. T just turned 13 and she is one of my favorite God's Girls of all time (besides Bonita and Linda of course, haha). I am SO excited that she is a teen now and will be coming to God Squad and all the fun stuff we do with teens. Her party was actually really fun and all the people she invited were God's Girls! I asked her what she wanted for her birthday and she said a day hanging out with me, so we're going out for a fun day (doing what? I have no idea!) when I get back from the mission trip and staff retreat.
So, after the birthday party I headed immediately to a leaders' meeting for the mission trip and then our final group meeting (dropping the girls off in the in between, whew!). The meeting started rocky, but only for me because I am a control freak that overreacts to small upsets. Thankfully, God checked my attitude quickly and I was able to enjoy the rest of the meeting. The teens were on task, very prepared and excited for the trip and almost all 18 of them prayed out loud at our closing prayer. I really think this is going to be an amazing trip!!!
We only have 4 teen girls going and I am really excited to pour into them. We have already talked about all the younger girls that will be teens this time next year and we are praying that God will prepare them to step up as leaders and mentors over the younger girls. I'm excited to see God move in these young women this week!
Okay, I need to go to my final packing. I have, unfortunately, left my house much messier than I had planned but I'm trying to make myself okay with it. :) I can clean when I get back...
Yesterday was an insane day. I went to Sunday School and then church, dropped the kids off at home, went shopping for VBS, immediately picked the girls back up and headed to T's birthday party. T just turned 13 and she is one of my favorite God's Girls of all time (besides Bonita and Linda of course, haha). I am SO excited that she is a teen now and will be coming to God Squad and all the fun stuff we do with teens. Her party was actually really fun and all the people she invited were God's Girls! I asked her what she wanted for her birthday and she said a day hanging out with me, so we're going out for a fun day (doing what? I have no idea!) when I get back from the mission trip and staff retreat.
So, after the birthday party I headed immediately to a leaders' meeting for the mission trip and then our final group meeting (dropping the girls off in the in between, whew!). The meeting started rocky, but only for me because I am a control freak that overreacts to small upsets. Thankfully, God checked my attitude quickly and I was able to enjoy the rest of the meeting. The teens were on task, very prepared and excited for the trip and almost all 18 of them prayed out loud at our closing prayer. I really think this is going to be an amazing trip!!!
We only have 4 teen girls going and I am really excited to pour into them. We have already talked about all the younger girls that will be teens this time next year and we are praying that God will prepare them to step up as leaders and mentors over the younger girls. I'm excited to see God move in these young women this week!
Okay, I need to go to my final packing. I have, unfortunately, left my house much messier than I had planned but I'm trying to make myself okay with it. :) I can clean when I get back...
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