July 4th weekend: Last E-training week

All I can says is wow! It was a challenging and exhausting weekend. We had so many people here with it being family weekend and 4th of July! But it was also very joyful too!

It was our last week of evangelism training. I went out with Laura Tyler(LT) this week. The first people we came up to wanted to listen to us but while we were sharing seemed really uninterested and told us they were already believers. We kept walking down the beach and prayed for the two girls we had talked to. As we were talking we passed a group of six girls. We usually only talk to groups of less than three...it's a lot less intimidating and much more personal. But I really felt like we should go talk to them. I told Laura this and she's like "I don't like talking to big groups" and I said "I don't either but they are all girls and they aren't doing anything." Before we approach we quickly prayed for boldness and courage because we were pretty scared.

We went to the three girls on the far end and asked if they wanted to see an illustration of the main theme of the bible. The girl on the end pointed to the third girl in and said "I think she wants to see it." I asked all three girls if we could share it with all of them. They agreed. The girl who wanted to see it was named Nikki and then there was Elizabeth and Bri.

As I started the bridge illustration they were joking and Iw asn't sure how it was going to go. Once we got to our testimonies though they became much more serious. After I shared mine I asked LT to share hers and I saw on the face of one of the girls that she could really relate to the ways God had brought Laura to Himself. We continued on and were talking about how it's not just knowing that God has saved you from your sin but it has to be a heart thing, a relationship. Nikki asked "Yeah, how do you do that?" We told her she had to turn from her sins and trust God that He forgave her and let Him lead her life. She told us she had really been thinking about it a lot lately. I was so excited. God had really been speaking to her heart and a seed had already been planted but He used LT and I to really point her toward Christ.

None of the three girls accepted Christ that we know of but we did get to pray for them before we left. We asked them what we could pray for them about and Elizabeth, one who hadn't really said much said guidance. I ask if you are reading this to please pray for Nikk, Elizabeth and Bri. Pray God would be ministering to their hearts and they would accept the gift God is giving them. LT and I left really encouraged by what God had done and just the opportunity He gave us to share the truth with these girls. We literally couldn't stop smiling :) Even in our weakness God used us.

The fourth was wonderful. We went to the beach and the waves were absolutely crazy as well as the number of people there. They shot fireworks off the end of the pier. It was a great time of fellowship and I brought home enough sand in my stuff to make a sand castle in our room. :)

Today was the beginning of prayer week!

Who Am I Really?

Welcome to Identity in Christ week. I feel like this is a question I am constantly asking myself. Who am I? What is my purpose? The bible has a lot to say about this and I have been learning a bunch about the lies I have been believing about myself and the truth, the way God sees me.

As people in this society we are constantly are giving and receiving messages about who we are and who others are. This could be something someone told you or even an event in our lives. As I think about the times where God really broke down my identity to make me trust Him more, one in particular comes to mind. When I was a sophomore in high school I got a varsity suit. I was then devistated that as a Junior I was denied one at the beginning of the season. It felt like everything I ever knew about myself was untrue. One of the things that God really taught me during this time was that I was more than just basketball, infact I wasn't basketball at all. Basketball became something I enjoyed rather than something that defined me.

Basketball was something that had made me feel good about myself but I think the false identities that make us feel bad about ourselves are even worse. In high school I wasn't very well excepted. I had one good friend but was being left out of things often. These events allowed satan to tell me lies like: You're not lovable, you are pretty enough, you aren't someone people like to spend time with. Last fall at Main Event confrence in Kansas City I identified these as lies that I still have trouble combatting. I can see how they effect me and still wrestle with them in my friendships which can make me insecure at times.

One of the things I've really been learning this week is just how to look only at who God says I am. God doesn't want us to find pride or sadness in anything that people tell us but rely on what He says as truth. What is really cool is that we have been given the fullness of Christ's identity when we accepted His gift of salvation. For bible study this week we looked at Ephesians 2. We made a list of who we were before Christ and now after.

Before: dead in transgressions & sin, following the world, disobedient, objects of wrath (ouch!), separate from Christ, excluded, without hope, without God and LOVED.

After: alive, receivers of Grace, God's workmanship, citizens of God's people, members of God's household, dwelling in the Spirit of God, and LOVED.

It's sweet that this is how God sees us every day! I can't wait until Heaven and my experience of who I am is the same with the way God knows me.

I think a good way to show you what I've learned this week is for you to watch this video. A couple of the team leaders I work with were talking uabout it and so I showed it to my girls as part of our bible study last night. Please watch it. Oh and one last thing. I just found out today that one of our staff was diagnoised with breast cancer and is having surgery on the 14th. They found it extremely early and she is having a mastectomy and they don't even think she will need any other treatment so praise God for that, but just be praying for fast recovery for Patty would be wonderful!

Video: You are Special

Weeks 2-3: Scriptures & Relationships

First off, I now have pictures on my computer so here are some of the pictures from the past few weeks.

This is our team at a theme rally night.  I made the girls flower pens as a welcome present and we all had them to record the insights of Jerry Bridges speaking on the word during week 2.  He spoke on how we can trust scripture and also how the entire Bible from Genesis to Revelations points to Jesus.  It was wonderful to hear from such a wise man.  This week we also got to do the skit.  It was called "So you Think You Can Quote Scripture!"  It was hilarious....Laura Tyler has pig tails because she was a little girl, she is really 22. 

This picture was from our first group date.  Friday we went our second group date.  We went to the beach and ate some fresh fruit, which is such a blessing having something rather than apples.  We had strawberries, fresh pineapple, watermelon, cantelope, and grapes.  Wonderful!  Then we played three games of sand volleyball which is quickly becoming one of my favorite pastimes! 

It was a great way to finish up Relationships week. We got to hear from both Beth and Jim Luebe and Kim and Mike Havenstein.  Both were very good and brought up a lot of conversation among our teams.  We were also very blessed to have Kyle and Katie Nelson and boys around for the week.  My team got to babysit Toby and Parker Thursday night during bible study.  They are such great boys!

This picture is actually from a week ago Friday we had a aqua olympic party.  One of the games was water polo via tubes.  This is a picture of the action.  We also did a sychronized swimming competition.  Here is a video of the Epic Romance:

This Saturday we did our fourth week of Beach evangelism.  We tried something new by going out in Co-Ed pairs.  I went with a team member Kyle and we got to talk to two couples.  One of the couples names was Jennifer and Mike.  Mike said he was believer and Jennifer said she had never heard of Jesus before.  It was really eye opening to meet someone who hadn't heard the name of Jesus before.  It was an exciting experience and we are really praying that Jennifer accepts Chirst. It has been so encouraging to hear stories each week of people accepting Christ on the beach and those are only the ones we know.  Please be praying that seeds we plant will be watered!

I Corinthians 3:6-9 Paul says "I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.  So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.  The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor.  For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."

This week will be talking about our identity in Christ.  Hopefully I will have time and internet to update you soon!

Week 1: Abiding in Christ

This is the first official week of the program.  We have a theme every week and this week's is Abiding in Christ.  We are studying John 15:1-17 which talks about how Christ is the vine and we are the branches.  It has been wonderful to begin a routine. 

I have officially started my job at Adventure Landing.  We have been getting up before the sun, which is between 5:30 and 6.  It is beginning to wear and it's only the beginning of week two.  Pray for time to rest! My job is really funny...I am maintenance/Welcome girl!  That's right...welcome girl! :)  For the first three hours I clean.  I get to run the bathroom machine, that's right a machine made for cleaning bathrooms, in the mornings.  I also vacuum for hours.  My vacuum is very special....it's a backpack vacuum which makes me kind of look like a ghostbuster.  It has earned me some nicknames including: sandsucker and ghostbuster.  My boss George just likes to call me and the other Nav girl that works with me George's Angels.

Being Welcome girl is my favorite part.  Mostly because I get to talk to people and not just listen to the vacuum.  One day last week a little girl was walking in on a hot day with her dad and was saying "I love waterparks, I love waterparks, I love waterparks!"  SO ADORABLE!  I told her, "Hun, your are going to have an amazing day!" :)  Then today I had just said my "Welcome to Adventure landing." and this little boy began waving at me and said, "Excuse me, excuse me, Welcome to Adventure Landing to you too!"  So cute!  Then he turned to his mom and said, "Mom, I welcomed her to Adventure Landing!"  HAHA!  Love being welcomed at work.

The other really fun occurrence was our first group date!  We were asked on a group date by team "<" (that's team less than).  They also are in our church group so it was really fun to get to know them.  We had supper together at the Osprey Diner, which is the dining hall :) and then went to the mall for a scavenger hunt.  It was so fun...hopefully I will have pictures soon!  We then went to a chocolate shop that also had ice cream.  We got ice cream and a free piece of chocolate and took a walk in the town center parking lot.  It's a great group of guys and we all had a great time!

We also had our first bible study this week.  And our first rounds of one on ones!  I feel like I am really connecting with my girls and I love them all dearly!  I can't wait to grow with them as the summer goes on.  One of the things you could be praying for is scripture memory.  It's something that, as a team, we have been struggling with.  Even though they know why it's important to hide scripture in your heart it has been a challenge.

Beach evanglism was great this week.  I went with Laura Tyler and we both got to share once but both groups were believers.  If you could be praying for non-believers who are ready and searching to come into our paths that would be really encouraging.  Jerry Bridges this week and talking about the WORD!

Earth Wind and FIRE!

I have been in JAX now for over a week!  It seems like it has gone by so fast and I just can't believe what God has already been teaching me and the ways He has been challenging me and shaping me to be more Christ like!

First I think I should share about what an amazing provider He has been!  Before school got out I was reading in Exodus 16 how after God brought the Israelites out of Egypt He fed them with Mana.  Each person was provided with just the right amount to meet their needs.  It was sweet how God didn't give them too little or too much.  I began praying that for my fundraising this summer and praying that I would be fully funded by the time I got to JAX.  Well our God is a faithful God who meets all of our needs according to his glorious riches in Christ!  It took us two days to get down here and on our first stop I got a phone call and I AM FULLY FUNDED!  Which is such a blessing!  I feel like I can now just focus on the work set out for me here and put all of my energy there!

There were also many aspects of my character that I was praying over God to break this summer and again he has been faithful.  One of these is my pride.  I would say that it's something that is always there, especially in a leadership position.  I was talking to Heather today, I girl that was in my bible study at UNI, about how God has really began to break me down in this area.  At UNI I feel like the NAV staff knows me pretty well and will give me many chances to lead and take things over which is one of the sources of my pride.  Here the staff doesn't know me as well and so they will pair me with another team leader that has been here before.  My first instinct is to defend my competence but I know that it is just my pride.  It's been amazing how God had been teaching me humility through these little things.

Another characteristic is when I get into large groups of people I tend to have a dominate personality...sometimes I call it "competitive talking."  I have really begun to desire being a more peaceful and quiet person, not meaning I don't talk but that I don't have to rule the conversation.  I have also seen God work in this way too.  I don't feel the need to command attention to myself which has been a new experience.

The most exciting thing is my my team! We are team EARTH WIND AND FIRE.  I didn't know about this whole team name thing but it's kind of a big deal to pick a sweet team name.  So mine is based off of Isaiah 43:1-2 and it's about how not matter what we go through God is our creator and he is with us.  I was so nervous to meet the women on my team but I couldn't me more excited to have these three wonderful ladies in my group.  Liz and Laura Tyler go to the University of Iowa and then Erica goes to Northwest Missouri State.   They are wonderful and It has been a joy to get to know them and their hearts for the Lord.  

Yesterday (Saturday) we got to do some evangelism.  I got to go out with Erica and we talked to three people.  They all said their were believers, but the most exciting thing is Erica got to share the bridge (illustration of the gospel) for the first time!!!!!  It was so exciting to see.  One of the things you could be praying for is just boldness and opportunities for us to share the gospel.

We have also had a bunch of team time this week.  One night we got gelato and just walked on the beach, we also all went swimming in the ocean and another night we spend an hour looking for a cookie place that I guess had now closed...so sad but it was the journey that was fun :)  Last night we went to an area downtown to eat that is right next to the harbor and we got to see almost twenty dolphins!!! It was AMAZING!  If you would be praying for just further unity and vulnerability for our team that would be wonderful!

I also had orientation for my job at Adventure Landing...which I start tomorrow.  We spent most of orientation playing lazer tag and driving go-carts so it was pretty fun.  I start at 7am tomorrow and I'm told we are doing odd jobs since we work at 7 but the park doesn't open until 10.  I'm really excited and think this job should be pretty fun and interesting.  They told me I might just be welcoming people to the park.  I like welcoming people so I'm totally fine with that! :)

I know this was kind of scattered but I hope it gave you a little update on what I'm learning and areas where you can be praying.  It is so encouraging to know there is a group of people prayerfully supporting me! Oh and my computer isn't working so I don't have any pictures so sorry...I'm sure there will be some on facebook soon!

Man's Best Motivator

So part my R&R since I've been home is going on walks and runs.  My running partner(s) are amazing motivaters...they have four legs, are covered in fur and are my two dogs.  My dog Molly is a genius.  She knows even when you are thinking about going on a run or walk.  This morning I was going to try to sneak out without her but she knows...

I woke up, checked the weather (humidity of 91% :P ), changed into my clothes and went to get my shoes which were up stairs.  I thought "If she is up there i'm just going to grab them, put them behind my back and put them on downstairs. (Have you ever tried to put on running shoes with an excited beyond belief dog dancing around your face?  It's hard! :) )  Anyway I saw her, went into the other room to get my shoes, put them behind my back so she couldn't see them and went down stairs to put them on and brush my teeth.  Soon I hear her "I know what you are doing and I want to come too" whines from the top of the stairs.  She sits there for a while and then they come down the stairs and are right outside my bathroom.  She goes into my room and sees no one then goes back up stairs.

After hearing these whines you just can't say no to her.  She is just the sweetest thing!  So after I got out of my bathroom i put on my shoes and decided since she is coming with me I might as well show the world the world's smartest dog.  Many times if my mom asks where I am going and I don't want to set off a reaction with Molly I have to say "I'm taking M for a W"  She knows walk and she knows w-a-l-k so you can't say those around her.  It's considered pure torture in our house and just cruel if you get her all excited and then don't take her for a walk.  In part of this video you can even hear my sister say "you are so mean" thinking I'm just video taping her for fun.

 Miss Molly also discovered car air conditioning on our drive to our running trail.  It was so cute, she kept putting her nose right on the vent! : )

Here are my superstars after our run...

Duke (he is very photogenic...haha!)

Molly

PART II - Taking a step of faith

After deciding at EDGE preview that I was going to start applying for JAX the next step was the trickiest!  Telling my parents, who were positive I was going to Eagle Lake.  However, God's timing is perfect.  I had spent the rest of the week in Colorado visiting friends and had only one, short night before I had to get back to Cedar Falls to Biscuit sit. (Biscuit is the dog I dog sit :)) 

I got home after driving for 12ish hours, I ate and fell asleep on the couch...however, after I woke from my little nap my parents asked if I had heard anything about this summer.  I told them that I wasn't going to be going to Eagle Lake anymore I was going to go to JAX.  My parents were caught off guard and there were a few tears shed but I showed them everything I had gotten about it. We watched some videos, google mapped University of North Florida and talked for awhile.  I went to bed knowing that I was going to JAX with my parent's blessing.

The next day I packed up my car and headed for school.  Next I had to apply.  Which would have been an easy task if I wasn't such a procrastinator and didn't take the literacy education killer class this last semester!  I did eventually get it done...even if it was at 9:45 PM the night it was due...:) And....I got accepted as a team leader.

One of my parent's biggest questions was how I was going to pay for this.  I told my dad that most people raise support.  This was what kept me from being a team leader in summer of '09 at SMR so I was worried how this would go over.  However, my parents talked about it and the next time I was home my parents told me to do what I needed to.  It was sweet to see how God had worked to change their hearts and continue to open doors for me to go to JAX!

Even though my parents were now at least semi-comfortable with me raising support, I hadn't realized that I wasn't quite there yet.  I had tried to save but with little time to work that wasn't really an option.  I hadn't realized how much pride I had and how in order to do this I would have to get over that and allow people to partner with me in doing God's work.

One of the passages that has been very uplifting to me in the past few months with fund raising has been Philippians 4:10-20.  Paul is thanking the Philippians for their gifts and sharing in his ministry.  That is what I was needing...partners in ministry.  I was also encouraged by one of my staff members.  I ran into her on my way to bible study one night and I started asking her who I should send letters to.  She told me everyone!  I don't get to decide who is on my team.  I had the chance to invite everyone I knew to be a part of what God is doing through me and that is good and glorifying in his eyes.  So I started sending out letters!  Nearly 100 letters in total.

It's been amazing to see God's faithfulness in it all.  I had been avoiding checking it and then when I finally did I saw I had over $400 already, which was so incredible!  When I got home for school I was seeing that I had quite a ways to go and was getting a bit discouraged.  I have been learning a lot about prayer and praying fervently and what that looks like.  So I went for a run and prayed the entire time for my funding.  One of the promises I prayed through came from Philippians 4:19 "And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."  God is going to meet all of my needs, even my funding for this summer!  It has been amazing to see God's faithfulness I am now up to almost $2000 as of tonight and am so excited how God is going to provide the rest. God has really grown my faith in this process...and that is what it has been, a process.

Even more to come about JAX and what I've been learning during my break!  I leave in 10 days!