Transitions and chaos.

Here I sit at the height of my exam week, about to finish my first year of Grad School...?!!? Who would have ever thought I'd see this day?

I'm exhausted, sick, sad, and BUSY! Sound familiar?

I've said good-bye to many of my closest friends as they have recently graduated and moved on to the next thing God has for them. I have enjoyed final moments full of a bittersweet sadness about the good-bye yet excited for what God is doing. I look ahead (in a couple weeks) to a summer of working, living with close friends, and spending time rediscovering myself. Everyone always says that studying to be a Counselor forces you to re-examine yourself..? They weren't lying!

I can't wait for Sunday afternoons at the lake, long evenings of heartfelt discussion with the sisters I get to live with, and weeks of planning ahead and looking at another year of being an RA and leading a hall full of girls just a little closer to the Throne.

My mind and heart are so full of warring feelings and thoughts that I continue to put things aside "for later this week."

Please do pray... transition is easily my least favorite thing in the world. And I must find jobs, settle in at the house, take and do the work for a summer class, and pack up and clean my hall/room. All in the midst of finishing up exams and papers. :-)

More updates coming soon....

I'm a liar....

So, I was deeply convicted this last week of how much of a liar blogs have made me. I sit in admiration of those who I know that keep their blogs so up to date with pictures, activity updates, and prayer requests. I so badly want to keep up. Each assurance is sincere in the moment and then life runs away from me again. It is so frustrating!

After being lovingly admonished by a dear cousin ;-) I realized that perhaps if I "redeemed" a couple of minutes of each week to try and share with others what is happening, I would feel better understood and more covered in intentional prayer. Yes, my reasons for updating are selfish. :-)

I have six and a half weeks of school left this semester. UNBELIEVABLE! How on earth has time flown so fast? I have realized more than anything in the last month how little time I take to focus on myself. No, not in a selfish way but simply to give a fraction of my time toward becoming a better image of my Lord. Part of that process, I am convinced, is learning to let others in to some of the deepest parts of where I am processing, questioning, and sifting through so many "wonderings" that I have. God is so faithful and accepting, yet I deeply desire to take enough time to process that I'm not always just simply living from the head knowledge I have that "things are fine." but to truly FEEL that way. :-) If that paragraph was confusing, I'm sorry. That is what it's like in my head. Abstract thoughts with very little complete formulation before I rush off to the next "crisis."

Today I will stop with a simple request. Please do pray for me as I continue to look at my life and think through how to spend my time, where my priorities are, and what things in my life need some extra attention at the moment.... Hoping for some more brief updates in the near future. :-)

"My bags are packed, I'm ready to go...."

Once again, I'm leaving...

My summer in Orlando has come to an end. I'm leaving tomorrow morning to drive back to South Carolina to start RA Training.

This summer was not what I expected. I struggled with things I didn't expect to struggle with. I learned things I didn't expect to learn. I experienced things I didn't expect to experience. And God is good.

This last month I have worked around 40hrs. a week in two different jobs at PIONEERS. I have been doing Mobilization/Recruitment and cleaning at our guest facilities. It has been an adventure!

Now I am headed back to school where I will spend two weeks in RA training and getting our new students settled in. It will then be time for me to start Grad School... aaaaahhhhhHH!

In the coming weeks I would crave prayers that I would find the time I need to be alone with God and "recover" from the busyness of my summer. In the midst of all I need to do and the people that I need to "engage" with, I am craving time to be alone and be refreshed. I'm excited about my 8hr drive to SC and hopefully "stolen" hours throughout the next couple days while I am unpacking and settling my room.

Please also pray that our time as RA's would be incredible. Our team last year was VERY close and it was a dream come true. Pray that as we get used to a new team that we would truly unify quickly and work together well. Pray that I will be careful about comparing things to last year and learn to love my new "family" deeply. I am SO excited about the journey!

I'll update soon on how things go! :-)

So much to do and so little time!

I am sitting here in Orlando and enjoying the fact that I have so many homes. I'm at home in Thailand. I'm at home in Orlando. And I'm at home in Columbia, SC. While I enjoy having so many homes and feeling comfortable in these places it also makes the going and coming quite a bit more difficult as I have so many friends and family all over the place! I'm attempting to do a good job of balancing and processing as I go along.

I'm also sitting here and thrilling at the ways that God answered your prayers and mine these last few weeks. As I looked back at the things I asked you to pray about in my last post I realized that God has answered ALL of them! 3 out of 3 ain't bad, huh?

1. All of our teams arrived eventually... safely and with their bags. Of COURSE there were glitches, but He was faitful!

2. I finished my weeks with the kids! I spent one week with MK's just coming back to the States for home assignments, etc. and another week with a different batch of kids that are on their way TO the field in the next 6 months. I enjoyed getting to know the kids and spending time talking through issues that are a big part of their lives as children of missionaries.

3. God gave me another job! I know am completely covered when it comes to work for this summer and God provided in miraculous and PERFECT ways for this need in my life. It is such a blessing!

I can't believe things are slowing down so fast. I really only have a little over a month left of my summer which makes me excited to see everyone at school and yet catches me off guard too, to think that it has gone so fast and I'm enjoying Orlando so much too. God is in control and always good, so I know all things will work together. And that He will prepare my heart as the time drawn nearer and nearer.

Summer so far....

So, my summer has been slow, yet busy and crazy. How does that work???

I landed in the U.S. on Thursday the 5th and didn't get to Columbia till very late that night. I went to my grandparents and settled in towards the wee hours of the morning. Friday I spent running around campus trying to take care of things, and seeing friends. Saturday I repacked all my things and then flew to Chicago!

Since then I have been working for PIONEERS at The Edge orientation, helping with logistics and enjoying getting to know the students. The Edge is our short-term program that sends college students all over the world for the summer. In 4, 6, and 8 weeks I'll be welcoming them back in Orlando for their debrief times. These times are some of my favorite times of the year and a wonderful part of my job with Mobilization. It has been a joy to serve them and exciting to see them gear up and head out.

Tomorrow I leave to fly back to Columbia, and then on Saturday I will drive to Orlando for the rest of my summer. For the last two weeks of June I will be helping PIONEERS by working with missionary kids and future missionary kids during two conference weeks being held at the campus.

Please pray:
1. For the folks we have sent out to serve this summer. That they would arrive safely and that they would quickly adjust to the cultures they will be living in all summer.

2. That I would have the strength to persevere through the busyness of the coming weeks and truly enjoy the MK's that I'll get to work with.

3. That I will find some more odd jobs to do during the month of July and that I would serve the Lord effectively and efficiently with the time He has given me this summer.

THANK YOU!

Desperately wanting to do better...

Well,
This is one more desperate attempt to do a better job of updating people on my life. I can't promise a daily or even a weekly update... but for those that want to hear more often then 1-3 times a year.... stay tuned! I'm trying!!!!!

Does the thought count for anything?

hehehe

For now.... here's something that I'll be sending out via email/mail in the next day or two...