The Moment That Changed Everything

Life is made of a lot of little defining moments. Moments of joy, sadness, victory, and defeat. Each of them are all strung together to create this thing we call life.

Recently I had one of those moments when I showed up to move into my new job. What I was expecting was to go sign some paperwork and then I would move into my new home on property (at this point I didn’t know which home that would be). But God has a sense of humor.

A few seconds later I receive a call from my new boss.

“You can go ahead and move into South and we will do the paperwork this  afternoon.”

“South?”

“Yeah, you know where that is right?”

My stomach drops, I knew exactly where South was. South is the first house that girls live in when they come into the program. It was also the one house that I did not want to work in. Funny how God does that.

So after I spent a moment considering turning my butt around and driving the whole way back to Pennsylvania, I put my car into gear and drove across campus. I sat there for a moment again considering just leaving before I mustered up the courage to go to the door.

What awaited me on the other side was one of the more terrifying moments of my life. The door opens and eight teenage girls on the other side of the door begin to freak out, and my stomach drops even lower. The rest of the day goes along the same lines. To be honest I don’t remember anything else from that day other than meeting my room mate.

So here I am over two months later and I love the fact that I live in South, at least for the most part… I live with teen girls. Of course I am going to regret my decision not to drive home on that first day at least once a week.

The girls I work with are a complete pain in the butt, but they are also teaching me so much about who I am, who God is, and what living a life that serves others really looks like.

Maybe I would change the way that this particular life changing moment came about (and the minor heart-attack that almost came as a result), but I wouldn’t change the outcome even a little bit.

Day 1

Day 1:

I walk into my dorm room for the first time and I look around. It is all I can do to keep from crying. I had just been met at the door of my car by a group of very excited girls from the dorm that I would come to call home for the next three years of my life. Then EVERYONE just started grabbing my stuff and carrying it up the stairs to help me get settled into my room. Now they all turn to me, they want to know where I want them to put everything. I just want them to put it back in the car so that I can go home, but I tell them to put it on the bed and in the closet. A thousand questions start racing through my mind, the first of which being “has there ever been such a sad, stark looking room in all of history?”

Day 983:

I take my favorite painting off the wall of my dorm room, wrestle out the nails, and step back to look at the blank wall. I then turn to look around my room littered with boxes and suitcases. A bittersweet tear wells up in my eye. I sure am going to miss this place that I hated so much when I moved in. There are a million different memories that spring to mind. Some of them painful and others bring a giggle immediately to my lips. None of them would I change. Here are a couple of the things I have learned during the three years that I have lived in Carter K3…

1. Time changes your perspective. The room that looked like a prison cell to me my freshman year has now become home in many ways. No longer do I look at it and want to cry (well sometimes, but that is only when I have been putting off laundry for a while). Time changes things a lot. It may be your perspective on a certain topic, on how much you hate a certain teacher’s teaching style, but keep an open mind and allow opportunities for that growth to happen. Because I promise you, if you are looking to grow and change your perspective and taking steps to do so you will.
2. People are all that really matter in the end. Period. End of story. No ifs, ands, or buts. You will never look back on your time in college and wish that you had spent more quality time with Netflix, or regret that you never perfected your “favorites” playlist on Spotify. You will however look back at the opportunities you could have had to impact the life or another, laugh until your abs hurt, or even crying with another person over their hurts. Those are the moments in life that matter, they are the ones you will hold on to for the rest of your life so invest in them.
3. Do the things that scare you senseless. For me, college was this big scary thing. Followed by a series of bigger and scarier events. First there was moving into the dorm, then the first day of class, then the first college exam, being asked to join campus security, filling out “adult” job applications, leading a foreign missions trip, and now leaving. Each of these things seemed much to big for me to ever be able to get through at the time, but each of them was worth it. God uses the times when we have nothing left of ourselves to make us more like Him in some of the neatest ways imaginable. These types of situations show us how absolutely weak we are, and how mighty He is.

So here I am 983 days from when it all started. To be honest I would go back and do it all again exactly the same if I were given the chance. Because it all lead me to this point in my life and on day 987 I will graduate and leave this place. Maybe for good, maybe not, only God really knows how it will all play out. There will be tears because it is an ending to a GOOD time of my life. It will also be filled with hope and joy because, when the sun rises the next morning I will be again back at Day 1: of a new adventure that is still unwritten.

Pictures from the Guatemala Trip 2015

I finally got around to putting up pictures from the Guatemala trip. Most of them are in the relative order of when they happened but not quite all of them.

It is really hard to get a good picture at 5 am…

End of the day Praise and Worship

Melody celebrated her 16th Birthday on the trip!

The whole team with the kids and some of the staff at Funaniños

Teaching Bible stories via Coco one of our interpreters

More Bible stories with Andres

Taking off on our first flight!

We did not plan to match… we promise

So enjoyed this little one

 

A couple people got to go to Andres’ and Omar’s fútbol match

  

So many selfies were taken

My awesome cousin

And another selfie…

More Bible stories…

Painting in the comador

“Hey Angelica! This stove is actually green under all this grease!”

I miss this!

Too cute!

The Fundaniños playground

Sad goodbyes

Cousin Picture!

We got a bit bored on the last plane ride…

We made it back to JFK!

Not so little anymore.

This is my family.

Well, it was us around 13 years ago at least. When I think about us as siblings this is the first picture that comes to my mind. But, this is no longer an accurate picture of us. We have all grown taller. Some of us much more than others. Most of us have had our hair color change, and we are in much different places in life.

This is us now.

We are not little kids anymore which can at times be hard to come to terms with. My “baby” sister is almost 14 years old. My older brother just shipped out to basic training today, my younger brother is moving to Orlando to work in just over a week and I will soon enter into my senior year of college and have applied to a internship in Guatemala for a year. My little sisters are now both in highschool and one of them is driving (thats a warning for those of you in the Wellsboro ares 😉 )We all are going our different ways in life, living in different areas, and having many different life experiences. Honestly that can be scary at times. Life no longer fits into a neat little box (although with us we never really fit into many of the stereotypical boxes to be honest). From here on out everything gets much more complicated.

But it is good.

One thing that has stayed the same since we were little were our parents influencing our lives to “run”. I have this vivid memory of my mom turning to me and saying “you need to run.” *Insert much confusion because we were at my brother’s graduation party and I had just talked about needing to leave soon. I really thought she was telling me to leave for some reason* Then she explained. She said “you need to run. Run far and fast. Chase the plan that God has for your life and do not let us hold you back.”

My wonderful parents who are always continuing to “run” themselves.

As long as I can remember my parents have encouraged me and my siblings to chase after our dreams and not to let doubts hold us back. They even have at times forced us to go beyond what we believed we were able to do because they knew it was better for us. For that I will always be thankful.

So yes, everything has changed. We are definitely not little kids anymore and as much as we may or may not want to we will never be able to go back to that time in our lives.

But, I would say where we are at is pretty good.

Going Back to the True Meaning of Resolutions

It’s that time of year again. By “that time of year” I mean the time of year when the year ends and everybody starts to post their New Year’s resolutions on every source of social media possible. Here are the top 5 New Year’s resolutions of 2014 according to www.statisticsbrain.com

1. Lose Weight
2. Get organized
3. Spend less, Save more
4. Enjoy life to the fullest
5. Stay fit and healthy

Now it may be just me because I am a bit skeptical at heart, but I always wonder how many of these “resolutions” are actually followed through to completion. According to the same website it s only 8% of people are successful in achieving their resolutions. Is it just me or is that disturbingly small number? Are we really so easily swayed by the temporary discomfort that our resolutions may cause? Or is there a bigger problem happening here?

I have been toying with a kind of different idea for this year What if instead of making a bunch of “resolutions” this year we just decided to be resolute.
To be resolute is to: “admirably purposeful, determined, and unwavering.” (according to google)
My generation will be known for a lot of things that we are not too proud of like wearing UGGS and leggings, twerking, being obsessed with selfies, and having attention spans similar to those of a goldfish. What if we added resolute, people of integrity to that list? It could make all the difference in the world.

For me this looks like actively committing to  putting my money where my mouth is when I say I am going to do something. Whether that is in something like working out more, being intentional in relationships, or in my school work.

What would this look like for you? As always I am still processing through this idea and would love to hear what you have to say about it.

For the Love of Letters

I have been thinking a lot lately about letters… strange I know.  We have so many more advanced and faster ways to communicate with people. I could find a pen and paper, spend probably 15-20 minutes writing out a letter (probably re writing it because there was some glaring mistake I just could not live with), stick it in an envelope, and pay (yes I said PAY) to have it sent to the person I am trying to communicate with. They will probably get the letter in two to three days at the earliest and then I will have to wait several more days to get their response, that is if they remember to respond. On the other hand I could open up my laptop, type out my message in 3-5 minutes (with auto-correct to fix my mistakes) and have it sent to them instantly. I will probably get a response within the day. Making it much more convenient and definitely much faster than writing a letter.

While it is much more convenient so just send people a message over the internet or text them, I wonder is it really better? I have loved getting letters since I was little, and that love has continued on into my college days which means I frequent the mail room quite often to see if by some off-chance someone has taken the time to pick up a pen and write to me. I have a couple of reasons that I have loved letters so much and will to continue to keep the tradition going.

1. When someone writes a letter is shows that they care enough to take the time to write the letter and share a part of their lives with you. That is special.
2. In a world where we store everything online and nothing seems to be built to last letters are something tangible that we can hold on to and read over and over again even if we change phones or our computer crashes.
3. Letters allow us to think and be honest with one another. There is this great quote by lord Byron.there just seems to be a special connection with a person that I have exchanged letters with.

In your mind these may be some extremely dumb reasons to write and love letters, but that’s ok. I challenge you to take the time to write someone a letter. Tell someone how you feel. Reconnect with an old friend. It will be worth your time, I promise.

Lord Send Me

              

“Here I am Lord, send me” were the words of the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 6:8. It was a response to God asking who He should send to preach God’s Word.

“Here I am Lord, send me.” Have you really thought about those words when we sing them at church or when we pray them hoping that God will do something awesome with our lives that will change the world? Have you considered that maybe God will send you to the one place that you have declared you never want to go? The place that is too dangerous, too dark, too cold, too hot, too exotic, or even too normal?

They are all legitimate questions to ask when trying to see where God may be asking us to serve for the rest of our lives. They are ones that I have asked myself so many times. They are also scary questions as well. I know that God is calling me to serve Him, that is what He calls all believers to do. But, what if He isn’t asking me to go? What if He is asking me to stay?

All that to say “Here I am, Lord send me where you wish. If that means you want me to stay, then I will stay and if you want me to go I will go. Just please use me as you wish to serve you all of my days.”

Guatemala 2015!

As many of you will have already heard, I am excited to announce that this summer I will be leading a short-term missions team to Guatemala. I am ecstatic as I am sure many of you will have already guessed.

The team will be going out through the ministry of Compass2819 . They will be helping with the logistics of the trip and the finances will also be going through their ministry so we can keep a better account of the money coming in. I am very excited to learn from them as this process continues.

While we are in country we will be working with Fundaniños Orphanage. For any of you family members out there, that is where Dennis and Barb Freed are currently serving with their family. The team will be doing a VBS program for the kids living at the orphanage as one of our main ministries. We will also potentially be doing a work project to help them out a bit, and of course we will be hanging out and playing games with the kids a lot :).

So what can you do?

1. Pray… Seriously though. I could use all of the prayers anyone is willing to send my way as I embark on this journey.

2. Have you lead a team overseas before? Please send me your tips in the comment section I would really appreciate it 🙂

Helpful links:

http://www.compass2819.org/

http://www.fundaninos.com/

Thank you all so much for taking the time to read about all of this. Keep your eyes out for future updates!

I Want to Travel the World

If you have spent any amount of time with me you know that I love travel and missions. As long as I can remember my favorite Sundays at church were the ones that a missionary was speaking. The new things they brought fascinated me, their stories enthralled me, and the idea of there being people out there so different from me boggled my mind. I always wanted to go somewhere, anywhere and in 2009 I got the chance. My parents decided to take my two brothers and I to visit some friends in Papua New Guinea.

 

Me my brother and my mom.

Playing a game with some local village girls.

Little did I know that trip would send me on a trip that I hope will never end. That trip opened my eyes to a whole world that I had never imagined. Later that year I GOT TO GO BACK! I couldn’t believe how lucky I was. Most people will never get to see that part of the world and I got to go twice? I couldn’t believe it.

The team and the house we framed

The first time we went it was an encouragement trip for some missionaries we knew. The second trip was a work trip and we go the chance to frame and roof the house that is pictured in the picture here. I came back completely changed once again. I didn’t get to go out of country again until 2013, but the desire was never far from my mind. So my senior year of high school I started exploring my options and decided that Guatemala was my next destination. I have some cousins serving there that I could go stay with. I did. I was so blessed to be able spend a couple of weeks with them in the wonderful place that they call home.

That leads me to the real purpose of this post. I am pleased to announce that June 2015 I will be getting the chance to go back to Guatemala. I will be leading a team of about 10 people to serve at Fundaniños Orphanage. I am super excited to begin the next leg of the journey that God has planned for me and would be honored if you would agree to join me in prayer for this endeavor. I will be updating this blog on the trip as it get closer :). Also comment if you would like to get a prayer and support  letter once I am ready to send them out.

The Courage to Sit Down

It is the end of the semester of my first year on campus (YAY!!!). I have survived (I think I haven’t taken my Theo exam yet… you can pray about that)!It is so hard to believe that it is already done. During this time of transition I have been thinking about a lot of different things. Anyone who knows me, you can confirm that at any random point in time  there could be about a million different things going through my mind. Here is the current thought for whatever it is worth to you.

There is this really cool quote by Winston Churchill that really struck me the other day.

“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”

That really struck me. Because yes, it is hard to stand up for what you believe when it is controversial sometimes. But how hard can it be to sit down with someone who you may not agree with and just listen to them? So in case you are like me and a statement like that doesn’t bring a visual to you mind here is the type of thing that I am talking about. This may be a bit of a stretch out there for some of you but hear me out. What if instead of looking at the girl who is sitting across the room from you in class not dressed well, falling asleep, and in a general state of disrepair and sat down with her over a cup of coffee? Because I would bet that if you did you would find out so much more about her than you ever bargained for. You may find out that her family is poor and all extra money is going on her school bill so clothes are not a big priority in her life. You also may find out  that she works a late shift to pay for school and that is why she is so tired. That situation is mild. Yes it may be hard to love someone who isn’t like you, but what about the atheist who is always posting argumentative comments on Facebook? What then? Would you have the courage to sit down with them and just listen to what they have to say? Not debate. Listen. You may find out some interesting things about them once you do.

Here is my challenge . This summer before school starts again I want you to sit down with someone who may not be the easiest person for you to be around. You don’t have to be best friends with this person but just sit down with them and listen to their story. Because they may be a difficult person, but they are still a person. You may be surprised and have something in common with them, but you never know until you try.  Then tell me about it I would love to hear how it goes for you.