Tomorrow our first group of youth will head home after an intense week in Sault Ste Marie, MI! I have been blessed and stretched in so many ways this week. It is hard to believe today is already Thursday and tomorrow morning by 9:30 am the youth will be heading home. I feel like a mother bird shooing her babies out of the nest for the first time. I want them to go home, spread the word, share what they've learned, be changed, but part of me wants to keep them here longer...prepare them more for the realities they are going to face at home. But despite my desire to do more with them, I'm giving them over to God...and placing them in the best place ever- His hands.
Getting to know the youth that came here this week has been nothing short of amazing. At first I was so intimidated and nervous....will they like me? Is that even where my focus should have been? Probably not. To be honest, at first I was put off by some of the youth and the attitudes that came with them. I was frustrated- don't they know how much we and others have been praying for them and their time here? Don't they care that one of us is talking right now and that it is not appropriate to be talking? Silly me...I learned a valuable lesson early on this week. One that I've always known but haven't really had to put into practice until this week. People seeking for attention will do whatever they need to get it...unfortunately this looks like acting out in negative ways. It hit me that if someone is seeking attention in a negative way, and I can see they are hurting, or desperately need some love, why should my first reaction to that be negative? I realized that if someone really needs attention that bad, than I should love on them, give them the time of day, and provide something constructive for them to do. I have fallen in love with these youth this week...and I'm sure its something that will happen for the remaining seven weeks of our time in Sault Ste. Marie.
This was supposed to be a somewhat shorter post, but as usual, it ended up being much longer than I intended. Please continue to pray for us. I know that the only reason I made it through this week was by the grace of God and prayers lifted up on my behalf. I've never been so dependent upon God for physical energy and strength before...it is a weired but freeing dependency for me to experience.
A new staff joined our team this week. J from Maryland has been a huge blessing, and I don't know how we operated without him before he got here!
Please continue to lift us up on prayer. Tomorrow morning-early evening will be spend wrapping up the week, and prepping for Sunday afternoon when our next group arrives. I hope you're enjoying the first couple weeks of summer!
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Summer Team!
This is our amazing team for the summer! Please remember to keep us in your prayers as we serve the community of Sault Ste. Marie, MI.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Final Countdown!
02 days until the chapter of "Employee of PESI Law & Accoutning" closes
10 days until a four-year chapter "College" of my life is closed
11 days until the chapter entitled "First Year of Marraige" closes
12 days until a new chapter of my life starts..."YouthWorks"
What is with me and all this counting down? I'm not desperately awaitng for my life to being...for it clearly already has! Maybe (due mostly to graduation), I'm just realizing that I'm not a kid anymore, and God has plans for me in the future- whether I feel ready or not!
God doesn't call the prepared, He prepares those He calls. That's how I feel right now. God is preparing me (and Andy!) for an amazing summer...but even more than that, an amazing future. Andy and I recently said to one another "if the first year of marriage is the hardest, we have it pretty easy!" I am so incredibly blessed by my husband- he daily encourages me to grow in my relationship with the Lord, yet at the same time, doesn't give me anything but grace and forgiveness when I mess up. At one time during my college career, I thought I had my future all figured out (laughable, I know), but now I've thrown my hands up and have said, "okay- I get it God. I don't have you figured out, or what You want from me...other than to love You with all my heart."
After the summer, we don't have a plan figured out, but for once in my life, I'm fine with not having every detailed figured out. What's it worth anyway? By the time I have all the details figured out, they've all changed! I have definitely been stretched beyond what I thought I could be this semester, and have finally realized that God is a much better planner than I will ever be. Although I need to be responsible, I need to find the balance between being a control freak and lazy couch potato. Oh extremes...you have to appreciate them.
I think I'll chalk this post up as one of the more random ones in a while. But hey- at least I posted again before two months went by! :)
10 days until a four-year chapter "College" of my life is closed
11 days until the chapter entitled "First Year of Marraige" closes
12 days until a new chapter of my life starts..."YouthWorks"
What is with me and all this counting down? I'm not desperately awaitng for my life to being...for it clearly already has! Maybe (due mostly to graduation), I'm just realizing that I'm not a kid anymore, and God has plans for me in the future- whether I feel ready or not!
God doesn't call the prepared, He prepares those He calls. That's how I feel right now. God is preparing me (and Andy!) for an amazing summer...but even more than that, an amazing future. Andy and I recently said to one another "if the first year of marriage is the hardest, we have it pretty easy!" I am so incredibly blessed by my husband- he daily encourages me to grow in my relationship with the Lord, yet at the same time, doesn't give me anything but grace and forgiveness when I mess up. At one time during my college career, I thought I had my future all figured out (laughable, I know), but now I've thrown my hands up and have said, "okay- I get it God. I don't have you figured out, or what You want from me...other than to love You with all my heart."
After the summer, we don't have a plan figured out, but for once in my life, I'm fine with not having every detailed figured out. What's it worth anyway? By the time I have all the details figured out, they've all changed! I have definitely been stretched beyond what I thought I could be this semester, and have finally realized that God is a much better planner than I will ever be. Although I need to be responsible, I need to find the balance between being a control freak and lazy couch potato. Oh extremes...you have to appreciate them.
I think I'll chalk this post up as one of the more random ones in a while. But hey- at least I posted again before two months went by! :)
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Good Morning, Friends & Family!
As previously stated, I do apologize for not updating the blog on a regular basis…I guess working and going to school has a way of eating up my time. ;) Well, as promised, I am including some pictures, a city and a state in this blog post.
Sault Ste. Marie, MI
We are moving to Sault (Sue) Ste. Marie, MI for the summer! We have been offered full time summer staff positions with YouthWorks. Typically, a summer with YouthWorks involves little sleep, sleeping on a church or school floor, and hanging out with junior and/or high school students. To add icing to the cake, the city we are in has a poverty level of 17.5%, and the unemployment rate in this city of about 14,000 is 8.3%. Oh, and did I mention the summer involves little sleep? After saying all of that, we are the crazies who are extremely excited for the adventure God has laid before us.
YouthWorks is a multi-faceted non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, MN. In the summer, the organization pours a lot of resources into their short-term missions’ trip program. With over 70 sites in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada, YouthWorks strives to show the love of Christ through reaching out to various communities. Reaching out to the community out of love for Christ involves service projects, Kids’ Club, and much, much more. The service projects range from mowing someone’s lawn to helping out in a soup-kitchen for the day. The kids’ program (from what I understand) is Vacation Bible School (VBS) for the community’s children all summer. Monday through Thursday, the children in the community have the option to come and learn about Jesus, and who they are in Him.
Each Sunday afternoon, a new group of junior & senior high school students come to our site in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. These students and their leaders have orientation on Sunday night. Andy gives orientation to the adult leaders, and I along with our two other staff members give orientation to the youth. Each day after the youth & their leaders return from their work site, they have down time for about 2 hours. Dinner is at 5ish, with nightly activities & Club to follow. The activities allow the youth to learn more about the community. Club is much like youth group in that there is music, a message, and the group then breaks up into small groups to discuss the message and the day with one another. Club is my main responsibility for the summer- I will be leading the musical worship time as well as delivering the message each night. Andy’s main responsibility is to take care of the site staff, and the leaders of the groups that come. He also manages the summer budget, and fills in where needed at our service project locations &/or Kids’ Club.
There is so much more I could say, but I don’t want to write an overwhelmingly long post. So many prayer requests have been answered in regard to this summer program. Because of this, we have complete peace about joining YouthWorks in ministry this summer. That being said, please keep us in your prayers…especially the sleep part for me- we’ll be getting an average of 6 hrs a night, and my needy body usually can’t function on less than 7.5. Please pray for strength and wisdom for Andy this summer as he watches out for the well-being of the staff, and our overall ministry in Sault Ste. Marie, MI.
As previously stated, I do apologize for not updating the blog on a regular basis…I guess working and going to school has a way of eating up my time. ;) Well, as promised, I am including some pictures, a city and a state in this blog post.
Sault Ste. Marie, MI
We are moving to Sault (Sue) Ste. Marie, MI for the summer! We have been offered full time summer staff positions with YouthWorks. Typically, a summer with YouthWorks involves little sleep, sleeping on a church or school floor, and hanging out with junior and/or high school students. To add icing to the cake, the city we are in has a poverty level of 17.5%, and the unemployment rate in this city of about 14,000 is 8.3%. Oh, and did I mention the summer involves little sleep? After saying all of that, we are the crazies who are extremely excited for the adventure God has laid before us.
YouthWorks is a multi-faceted non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, MN. In the summer, the organization pours a lot of resources into their short-term missions’ trip program. With over 70 sites in the United States, Puerto Rico, and Canada, YouthWorks strives to show the love of Christ through reaching out to various communities. Reaching out to the community out of love for Christ involves service projects, Kids’ Club, and much, much more. The service projects range from mowing someone’s lawn to helping out in a soup-kitchen for the day. The kids’ program (from what I understand) is Vacation Bible School (VBS) for the community’s children all summer. Monday through Thursday, the children in the community have the option to come and learn about Jesus, and who they are in Him.
Each Sunday afternoon, a new group of junior & senior high school students come to our site in Sault Ste. Marie, MI. These students and their leaders have orientation on Sunday night. Andy gives orientation to the adult leaders, and I along with our two other staff members give orientation to the youth. Each day after the youth & their leaders return from their work site, they have down time for about 2 hours. Dinner is at 5ish, with nightly activities & Club to follow. The activities allow the youth to learn more about the community. Club is much like youth group in that there is music, a message, and the group then breaks up into small groups to discuss the message and the day with one another. Club is my main responsibility for the summer- I will be leading the musical worship time as well as delivering the message each night. Andy’s main responsibility is to take care of the site staff, and the leaders of the groups that come. He also manages the summer budget, and fills in where needed at our service project locations &/or Kids’ Club.
There is so much more I could say, but I don’t want to write an overwhelmingly long post. So many prayer requests have been answered in regard to this summer program. Because of this, we have complete peace about joining YouthWorks in ministry this summer. That being said, please keep us in your prayers…especially the sleep part for me- we’ll be getting an average of 6 hrs a night, and my needy body usually can’t function on less than 7.5. Please pray for strength and wisdom for Andy this summer as he watches out for the well-being of the staff, and our overall ministry in Sault Ste. Marie, MI.
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
ya...sorry for the delay
Wow....two months is a long time between posts. My apologies. An update is coming soon- I promise! It will involve a picture or two, the name of a city & state, as well as two descriptions....
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Detox
Hello All!
Today marks day 3 for me of 7 of a detox I am doing to rid my body of junk. This is most definitely a challenge in so many ways, but I am enjoying it as much as one can enjoy a detox. :) However, it got me thinking....what would a 7-day spiritual detox look like? I'm taking seven days to rid my body of sugar, bad fats, and other junk that has built up inside of me...what if I take seven days to rid my mind and heart of sin? What does that look like?
Any thoughts out there?
Today marks day 3 for me of 7 of a detox I am doing to rid my body of junk. This is most definitely a challenge in so many ways, but I am enjoying it as much as one can enjoy a detox. :) However, it got me thinking....what would a 7-day spiritual detox look like? I'm taking seven days to rid my body of sugar, bad fats, and other junk that has built up inside of me...what if I take seven days to rid my mind and heart of sin? What does that look like?
Any thoughts out there?
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Bitterness is not Becoming
I can't recall the saying, but the concept that bitterness only hurts the one who is bitter really isn't true. I don't know about you, but I have been the brunt of others' bitterness before, and it is anything but non-hurtful....so you think I would have learned from that to not be bitter, but oh no, as usual, I had to learn this one on my own.
Over the last year or so, I've been struggling with bitterness towards people who shall remain anonymous and hopefully undetected throughout this post. I allowed silly things like people saying they'd call and then not, or calling too much, or making me feel like they forgot I exist, or blowing me off, or _______, to take take root in bitterness. And even though all the above are true, why would I want to harbor bitterness in my heart? Why would I want ugly sin to take root, make it's home in my heart, and play a determining factor in my thoughts towards certain people in my life? I don't know...I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time???? Is there ever really an adequate justification for why we sin?
A couple of weeks ago in church, we were challenged to take a step of faith and surrender sin that's been lingering over to Christ. Our pastor encouraged us to take the physical step of writing the sin down and putting it at the foot of the cross. I sat in my chair thinking about how bitter I have been lately towards some people, and asked God to not only forgive me, but to show me what it looks like to love these people like He does....despite how much I've been hurt by their actions (or the lack of actions) towards me. It is hard...it really is. How do I even begin to change my heart towards some people who have hurt me and don't even know they've done so? I know it is not biblical or Christ-like to harbor bitternes or ponder the wrongs committed towards me, but how do I LOVE with an unconditional love?
I've been praying about this over the last few weeks, and this is the conclusion I have reached: Pray for God to show me more ways to love others, but in the meantime, whenever bitterness rears it's ugly head, think of something for which I am truly thankful. Think about something in that person that is admirable. Think about what Christ did for me when He set me free. Give praise to God.
I'm not sure if any of you have struggled with bitterness, but any advice you have to share would be appreciated. :)
This morning, I read this verse, and absolutely love it!
1 Timothy 1:16
"But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. " (ESV)
Jesus showed me, the worst of sinners, mercy. Through me, Jesus will show his patience (which is unlimited and perfect) as an example to others of what it looks like to trust & rely on God forever. (Hannah Baldwin Version)
I hope you all have a fantastic, bitter-free weekend!
Over the last year or so, I've been struggling with bitterness towards people who shall remain anonymous and hopefully undetected throughout this post. I allowed silly things like people saying they'd call and then not, or calling too much, or making me feel like they forgot I exist, or blowing me off, or _______, to take take root in bitterness. And even though all the above are true, why would I want to harbor bitterness in my heart? Why would I want ugly sin to take root, make it's home in my heart, and play a determining factor in my thoughts towards certain people in my life? I don't know...I guess it seemed like a good idea at the time???? Is there ever really an adequate justification for why we sin?
A couple of weeks ago in church, we were challenged to take a step of faith and surrender sin that's been lingering over to Christ. Our pastor encouraged us to take the physical step of writing the sin down and putting it at the foot of the cross. I sat in my chair thinking about how bitter I have been lately towards some people, and asked God to not only forgive me, but to show me what it looks like to love these people like He does....despite how much I've been hurt by their actions (or the lack of actions) towards me. It is hard...it really is. How do I even begin to change my heart towards some people who have hurt me and don't even know they've done so? I know it is not biblical or Christ-like to harbor bitternes or ponder the wrongs committed towards me, but how do I LOVE with an unconditional love?
I've been praying about this over the last few weeks, and this is the conclusion I have reached: Pray for God to show me more ways to love others, but in the meantime, whenever bitterness rears it's ugly head, think of something for which I am truly thankful. Think about something in that person that is admirable. Think about what Christ did for me when He set me free. Give praise to God.
I'm not sure if any of you have struggled with bitterness, but any advice you have to share would be appreciated. :)
This morning, I read this verse, and absolutely love it!
1 Timothy 1:16
"But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. " (ESV)
Jesus showed me, the worst of sinners, mercy. Through me, Jesus will show his patience (which is unlimited and perfect) as an example to others of what it looks like to trust & rely on God forever. (Hannah Baldwin Version)
I hope you all have a fantastic, bitter-free weekend!
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