1st semester of my freshman year in college=DONE!!!!

Oh Gosh it feels great to be done! The semester has gone by SO fast! I can't believe it is already Christmas break and time to go home until the spring semester. TIme is flying by and i am so happy with where i am. I am so unbelievably thankful for where God has brought me, what he has showed me, and how he has grown me! He is such a great dad:)

So many different things have happened this semester.

I have started and stopped leading a 8th and 9th grade girls small group, It was wonderful while it lasted but quickly i realized that was not where God wanted me.

I have join the Link which is a college ministry.

I have Join the Lead team for the Link, and i have been to many different churches trying to find home. Which by the way, definitely got to go to a black church which i definitely a dream come true and everything i hoped for and more. Jesus was so present, and was so powerful last Sunday when i attended St. James Missionary Baptist Church.

I have met so many wonderful and encouraging people, and people that will be my friends for the rest of my life. I have been through Rush recruitment and found out that this was the wrong season but maybe next year. I have found that friendships are founded on truth, God and your willingness to try. I have found out that while i'd hoped that everyone is and had as great as a first college experience, that is not always a truth. I have grown to have an even deeper love and appreciation for my wonderful creator and have thanked him over and over for protecting my heart. While i can be kind of harsh and blunt, it has protected me from a lot of heartache, yet caused a lot as well. I have also found out that i do indeed have a softer side haha that does cry... imagine that. Everything is not always what it seems, and doesn't go as planned. But all the more reason to not lean on your own understanding and put full faith in God that he is always right! I have learned to learn study habits and make them really solid and that you can not put things off until the night before in college, r at least i can not do it, although i do have friends that can.

All of these things are wonderful and i am so blessed to have learned all of these things, in order to better succeed next semester. I am so excited to come back from break and continue on this journey in college that Jesus has planned so delicately and detailed:)

The greatest lesson of all though, is to depend on the Lord and the Lord alone, you can have wonderful friends, family and even your grades might be great but if you have relationship with him, then you have nothing. Everything happens for a reason and i am so blessed and thankful to be placed in such a wonderful position to minister to others so easily and to get poured into.

God is so great, it just takes my breath away.

mmm....Amazing!

New EVERYTHING that i LOVE:D

Fayetteville is AWESOME! God is so faithful and just simply great. he has protected and watched over me so much in the past 1 month and will continue to. Its just refreshing to really experience it and know that he is there by the little things he reveals and does, the people he presents to you and the situations you get in and out of.

Being in this new place i have met amazing friends, i love school (except math of course, but thats okay), i have been to incredible churches and have experienced God in so many new ways! I have had some of the most random moments and very silly and fun times! I have had my heart tugged on a little and been confused a little, and i can NOT wait to see what comes in the future! Jesus is just continuing to show me how he is using me, how i can be used and how i can have an open heart.

Looking for an internship at a church has been on my heart for a while and i am slowing getting into the groove of looking for one. I have been offered to help out with the 6th grade girls small group at a church and i hope that that is something God wants me to do, but i am still praying about it. I still have not found a sunday morning church. I have however found a church on sunday nights, i guess its more of a college ministry affiliated with a church. It its indescribable how God moved every sunday night! and Throughout the week. They have a retreat coming up that i think i am going to go on, so I'm pretty excited about that and excited to see what God has in store for that weekend!

I am growing and learning everyday how to be more christ-like and depend on him more. I think is going well so far. I am just so pumped to see what is in the future!

I am home this weekend for labor day and it is so neat to see people i haven't seen a while and to come back and see the different changes in edmond. Its good to see my family, but it just amazes me how i can get annoyed with them in the day that i am here. haha oh well i love them tons and so glad that i get to see them! I guess its just part of being a college student and getting us to being on your own.

It breaks my heart to see some of my friends not being as happy as i know they could and want to be. I just want to make everyone better!

God is so great and i am ecstatic to see what he has in store!

Home from disciple.

My heart hurts.

I just had the best week meeting new friends and getting to know my 6th grade girls group. God worked in so many incredible ways. Some of them have such heavy hearts and i just want to take there pain away. No one deserves to hurt that much at that age, let alone anytime in there life. I pray that they can be wrapped tightly in the arms of God and be guided and that there heart be protected. A part of me is still left in Africa, people are slowly pulling themselves back more and more because of college, people are not following up with what they say and i don't like any of it. But now is a time in life where i really really have to cling to God and listen to him speaking. He has used me in so many ways and continues to do so but sometimes i just feel... here.

I'm excited to meet new people, get to know a new town, find a new community of people, and be challenged. I think that God has great things in store but sometimes its just hard to sit and wait.

I do have a wonderful life and great people in it and i appreciate everyone that has every supported me and continues to do so. God is great. I am just in a weird yet great place in my life.

So all prayers are welcomed:D

Please and Thank you.

"Be still, and know that i am God,

I will be exalted among all nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!"

Psalms 46:10

mmmmh... Just an update.

Okay since last time i wrote i have been to Colorado on a trip with friends, and to Dayspring. Colorado was incredible fellowship with Max, Lauren Overton, Kim, Scotty, Brendan, and Alli. We had the time of our lives and i think that we learned alot from and about each other. We had a different adventure everyday! We went white water rafting, alpine sliding, shopping, to see harry potter... which is another story you can ask Max about, and we hiked on top of a mountain , which was probably about 12 miles when it was all said and done. The day we went hiking was a huge adventure that only God got us out of. To get back to town from the hiking trail was a long way and we were taking a short cut, but little did we know the short cut was going to be a near death experience. I loved it the whole time and trusted Max's driving skills that we would get home safe, but some others decided it would just be better to go the longest way cause they didn't really like feeling like there was a chance we might fall off the side of the mountain of course he would never let that happen but i guess that they didn't want to risk it. Which is understandable, so in taking the long way we drove about 4 hrs home which got us home at about 11 not mentioning the domino's story which is another story that needs to be told in person. But in saying all of that we really did bond and got to get to know each others hearts. But just know that pretty much every where we went we got lost. It wasn't that we didn't know where we were going its just that we followed stupid iphone gps and stupid maps that weren't even right. But i really truly believe that getting lost ever time was something from God because every time we all got something wonderful out of it, besides learning how to not be frustrated;D Anyways, Colorado was great !

Dayspring was a lot of fun even though Aubry, Max, and i were the only graduates that went from New Covenant but it was okay because we got to know each other a little better. Our small group was incredible, we didn't really follow any curriculum, we just shared our stories and encouraged one another. My heart broke for every single person that shared because i think a lot of time we get caught up in our own world, and yeah we know that a lot of bad stuff happens to good people but until you hear someone tell you face to face that i use to suffer from depression and tried to kill my self, or my dad abuses and molested my sisters, or i got hooked on pain medication to your face its only then you began to realize that even the people you know have gone through more that you could imagine. God worked through each and everyone of our stories to either let some of us know how blessed we are, or encourage others to keep hope. God moved in so many ways and its just weird to think that the next time I'll be back it will be as a leader.

I am the definition of a bottle of emotions. I am realizing that i won't share life with many off the people i do now. And i think that it kinda scares me. I HATE being vulnerable but that exactly what i am right now. The only person i can really count on is God i know he will get me through whatever and help me with my stress and burdens. I feel as though people say that they will keep in touch and maybe mean it but i don't know how much it will happen, and that makes me really sad. I know that many of us will change and grow and get involved in many things but i hope that we don't lose faith in Christ, and forget who our first friends were. My friends mean more than the world to me and i just cant express how i will miss them. i know that i am doing the right thing going to Arkansas for school but i am just feeling feelings that i have never before and i don't like them to be honest.

So as i leave to go to disciple one more time this summer before i leave forever i pray that God can give me a peace about everything that he can grow and change hearts at disciple and use all of the leaders and shining rays of him to pour into these students and really show them the love of Jesus Christ. I pray that as every parts ways that we can still be connected and a part of each others life, stay close to God and always remember the person God molded us and continued to mold is into. I pray that we can go out and be the light in the world of darkness and truly seek out what God has for us.

Amen.

hummmmm....

Crumb-snatchers and the 4th:D

So for the past week i have been watching Trae's children... Harper-the twin girl, Camden-the twin boy and carter- the 4? year old. They are great children unless harper is having a bad day. I do say a lot of things about how they are crumb-snatchers but really they are precious and i love every minute of taking care of them. I truly think that this isn't just a job for me until Ava comes home (P.S. I miss her dearly) but i really think that this is a learning time from God for me. He is teaching me patience, how to be kind and gentle. He is showing me how to love them how he loved the little children and most importantly loved us. So i just think that they truly are a blessing and God can just work in so many funny and little mysterious ways. 

Today was AWESOME! It was America's Birthday AND Claire's :D I hope that they both had the BEST day ever! I loved today because it started out with getting up at 7:30 and getting to play the shaker on the New Cov float in the parade! Then Lauren Bruno went to lunch at wonderful Panera, went to Walmart, went back to my house to make some brownies for Max's THEN took a 3 HOUR NAP:D  After that we proceeded with the celebrations! We went to Max's for a rockin party, ate and had fellowship. After a while we went to UCO to watch some fireworks and then after that we went to the Bruno's house and had a little show of our own! 

That was my best 4Th ever!  Luckily no one got hurt and EVERYONE had a spectacular time:D

Another great day!

Today is short and sweet...

Once again i would just like to brag about how blessed of a day i had! 

Today was another early day, it started at 5:30, i went to go pick up Aubry at 6 then we went for about a 15 mile bike ride, then had breakfast, woke Ava up;D then Mallary and i laid out and swam all day, i went to babysit for kids that i absolutely love and i was going to go camping but i  will be going to the hospital to check on my very best friend, Aubry. If you all cold be praying for her because she has these spells where she has these very very severe migraines and cant function there so bad, to day she was working out in the sun... not the best but was vomiting and collapsed several times. So if you all could be in lots and lots of prayer for her it would be greatly appreciated! 

But I'm so blessed to live everyday to the fullest and love so much! 

Count your blessing everyday!

Home from Africa

I feel as though i have left a HUGE part of my heart in Africa, I'm super duper glad to be home but my heart hurts because i had to leave the people of morogoro. I hope next year i will get the opportunity to go back! And i also felt as though i grew a lot during that trip and feel as though God had a special plan for my future...possibly in Africa.

Its been about 4 days since I've been home from Africa. I got home on Sunday night then got up early Monday morning and drove to Arkansas for my freshman orientation. I learned a lot more about the university and it got me even more excited to go there in august! They have so many traditions I'm so excited to become a part of:D It was also really nice and refreshing to spend sometime with my family while sharing all of the excitement of enrolling.

I got home Tuesday around 4 and then helped Ava move.....Again. It was great though!  She has a cute new house and it fits her and her roommates!

Today I got up about 8 went to breakfast with aubs and had a great time! Then i went for a bike ride around Edmond which was amazing as well, now I'm at Starbucks writing this to you;D

Last Day in Africa:(

Oh gosh! It has been great! It is so sad to me that its our last day/night in Morogoro. The church people are throwing us a going away party tonight, which will be really sad to say goodbye to our new friends. Yesterday was a VERY interesting day let me tell you! It started off with an hour and a half long bus ride to mekumi...The national park. Then we went through the park and saw many many neat things. After that we stopped to go to a masaai village- one of the local masaai that is currently in the pastor training school. He's REAL boonchie:D

Okay picture this we are in a 24 passenger bus and we pull off onto this path/ Road which basically put us on the front porch of this like corner store haha anyways, so the driver drives just as far as he think he can go with this big bus, let me just say this "road" was pot hole and trench center! So once we stop pastor Umba asks everyone is we can walk for about 20 min to reach the village and of course were all like yeah, of course, no big deal! what was a 20 min walk...turned into a 40 min walk haha funniest adventure of my life. so finally we get there and there all singing and welcoming us which by the way was just like when we arrived to the church for the first time...emotional. Then the sing us a couple church songs in masaai let us know how glad they were we came, we prayed and then guess what...time to go! Let me remind you this was about 5-10 min after we had just got there. so we start walking for about i would say 10-15 min and we see the bus, well the driver was so mad he tried to drive to us and pick us home to get the you know what out of there....he gets stuck hahahahahahha funnest thing ever! So 4 of the men push him out and we are on our way back home.
What an experience!

The day ended with a nice relaxing evening of just hanging out. Oh and the Mallary and i decided to go "bush baby" hunting:D We found some and they are so cute!

Until next time!

Church In Morogoro!

Oh goodness! Church was amazing this morning and God once again was see in many new and old ways. Kevin Harwi spoke and did a spectacular job. There was a translator and when he translated he would shout to the Lord as if he knew God was listening and he was having a conversation. It was just so awesome to see the way the worshiped and prayed. The woman in the choir would sing and dance and do as skip while singing. Once offering was giving the danced down the isle and sang a new song. There were testimony's from the people and they were short and to the point yet so powerful. The school kids did a couple of songs, skits and in Swahili recited chapters of psalms all from memory. How many of you can do that? It was just a great experience! And I'm so glad to be able to share with you.

Looking forward tomorrow's VBS and home care!

Africa!

6.13.09

I am currently in Tanzania, Africa doing mission work. It has been a wonderful experience! God has moved in so many amazing ways! (As usual) He has showed me that there are so many different and exciting ways to worship the Lord. These people here are incredible and are born hosting. They welcome you with open arms even though they have no idea who you are, and don't know the language you speak. This trip is a small vision showing what God has in store for me in the future. He is a very merciful God and uses so many weird, yet neat things to show you a sign. Tomorrow we will be going to church with these people and let me tell you i have NEVER been more excited! Because the first time we arrived to the site they had me in tears. For those of you that know me.. i don't cry. But yes i did on Wednesday! They were singing and dancing to the Lord, blessing us and greeted us with hugs and bouquet of flowers. Like i said this experience is just hard to explain!

I am looking forward to an exciting fun filled day with the people of morogoro!