So this trip has turned out to be so different than my expectations. The only thing I am disappointed in is that I have not gotten to share my testimony with my professor. With that being said, God has spoken to me in ways I could have never imagined, opened up doors for me with new people and He even took the time to find a Polish student who would give me such great encouragement. I have been given a sneak peek into the heart of God and realize that He loves each and every person so much and desires for all to come to Him. When they die and are separated from Him, He isn't just sitting up there happy to be rid of this non-believer. He mourns for His lost children. At Majdanek, I could almost feel His sorrow as He was comforting me in my sorrow.
Today is Auschwitz and I am praying that God will speak to me and use me on this day. God this is the day that you have made, take this day and use it as you wish.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
The Trip Thus Far
So the trip has been amazing so far. I am learning so much about my creator and about how He loves. For now I am just going to begin introducing you all to the people I am with.
My Rommie: Jennifer Kral
This half Serbian/half Czech history graduate is seriously one of the sweetest people ever. She is not opposed to the concept of God but hasn't really said what she believes in that way. She is encouraging to me though and easily one of the sweetest people you could ever meet. She is so silly too which has been nice seeing as we go to some pretty horrific places and she never ceases to make me giggle. She is one of the pickiest eaters ever and she readily admits it. She just got into the credential program at CSULB which makes me happy because I totally get to bug her for another year.
I have been praying for her a lot in that God would just bless her and just make Himself so real in her life. We have connected so quickly and that is a blessing and she said she would even come to Navs to hear me play sometime. I am blessed!
My Rommie: Jennifer Kral
This half Serbian/half Czech history graduate is seriously one of the sweetest people ever. She is not opposed to the concept of God but hasn't really said what she believes in that way. She is encouraging to me though and easily one of the sweetest people you could ever meet. She is so silly too which has been nice seeing as we go to some pretty horrific places and she never ceases to make me giggle. She is one of the pickiest eaters ever and she readily admits it. She just got into the credential program at CSULB which makes me happy because I totally get to bug her for another year.
I have been praying for her a lot in that God would just bless her and just make Himself so real in her life. We have connected so quickly and that is a blessing and she said she would even come to Navs to hear me play sometime. I am blessed!
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Summer Preview
First off....DEUTSCHLAND:
So as some of you know I will be heading to Germany in about a week. It is crazy how the time has flown by! God has provided enough for the trip and I am trusting that He has the rest of my summer figured out financially. I have $700 to get me through Germany and the rest of my summer so it is going to be extremely tight but I trust that God has it. If you know of any baby sitting jobs or yard work that needs to be done, please contact me and I would love to help! The trip is going to be amazing and I know that God is going to teach me a lot through this experience. I am equally expectant that He is going to use me in some way to minister to the people I am going with. Please be praying for safety, understanding, and openness for us all. I cannot thank you all who supported me enough and be expecting a little thank you in the coming months =)
Now onto the rest of summer:
The "Why I Love This Town" Project:
So every summer I come home and for the first couple of weeks everything goes fine. I sleep in, I rearange my room, I clean the house, I catch up on my shows, and all is well. But once all that is done I end up feeling bored and start questioning the love of my friends and family. This is how it has been for the past two summers and I am not letting that be the case for this summer. So as the boredom began to creep in on me, I decided that I needed to be reminded of why I love being home. Thus the idea for this project was born. In the Bible, people would build alters in places where God showed something to the people. Whenever I think of this, I am reminded of how Jacob named the place where he wrestled with God (Gen. 32:22-32). It is not an alter but it has significant meaning and allows for Jacob to remember a lesson from God. How can I be content where God has me if I am not reminded of the significance that God has on this place not only in my life but in others?
This is just a sneek preview of what is to come. More to come tomorrow (or later today)!
So as some of you know I will be heading to Germany in about a week. It is crazy how the time has flown by! God has provided enough for the trip and I am trusting that He has the rest of my summer figured out financially. I have $700 to get me through Germany and the rest of my summer so it is going to be extremely tight but I trust that God has it. If you know of any baby sitting jobs or yard work that needs to be done, please contact me and I would love to help! The trip is going to be amazing and I know that God is going to teach me a lot through this experience. I am equally expectant that He is going to use me in some way to minister to the people I am going with. Please be praying for safety, understanding, and openness for us all. I cannot thank you all who supported me enough and be expecting a little thank you in the coming months =)
Now onto the rest of summer:
The "Why I Love This Town" Project:
So every summer I come home and for the first couple of weeks everything goes fine. I sleep in, I rearange my room, I clean the house, I catch up on my shows, and all is well. But once all that is done I end up feeling bored and start questioning the love of my friends and family. This is how it has been for the past two summers and I am not letting that be the case for this summer. So as the boredom began to creep in on me, I decided that I needed to be reminded of why I love being home. Thus the idea for this project was born. In the Bible, people would build alters in places where God showed something to the people. Whenever I think of this, I am reminded of how Jacob named the place where he wrestled with God (Gen. 32:22-32). It is not an alter but it has significant meaning and allows for Jacob to remember a lesson from God. How can I be content where God has me if I am not reminded of the significance that God has on this place not only in my life but in others?
This is just a sneek preview of what is to come. More to come tomorrow (or later today)!
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Deustchland is almost here
So this past semester has been such a growing experience for me. I am going to explain some of the stuff Christ has taught me about himself and how I came to understand these beautiful truths.
1. God loves me no matter what I do or don't do:
In Bible study with Alissa we looked at Colossians and I remember that as we were discussing the concept of works and such, God loves us regardless if we do something or whether we do something we shouldn't. I had been struggling with experiencing God's forgiveness in my life but something clicked at Navs Conference: God is in love with me and His love is worth more than the cost of my sin. Guys do you get this? What we did is so small in comparison to what He can do.....HE CAN REMOVE IT ALL FOR HIS GLORY.
2. God provides and provides abundantly:
So I am going to Germany, The Czech Republic, and Poland this summer. When God called me to go on this research class I said no way! I could never afford it and I still need money for this summer. Not only has God provided most of this money through the loving donations of others but He also has secured enough money in my account to make it so I do not have to work this summer (I also cannot go any where but that is ok....family time is good!)
3. God desires me to invest in others:
God has given me an opportunity to share about how He saved me from myself with a friend at home this summer.
Please continue to pray for me and my mind as I embark on this summer's journey~
1. God loves me no matter what I do or don't do:
In Bible study with Alissa we looked at Colossians and I remember that as we were discussing the concept of works and such, God loves us regardless if we do something or whether we do something we shouldn't. I had been struggling with experiencing God's forgiveness in my life but something clicked at Navs Conference: God is in love with me and His love is worth more than the cost of my sin. Guys do you get this? What we did is so small in comparison to what He can do.....HE CAN REMOVE IT ALL FOR HIS GLORY.
2. God provides and provides abundantly:
So I am going to Germany, The Czech Republic, and Poland this summer. When God called me to go on this research class I said no way! I could never afford it and I still need money for this summer. Not only has God provided most of this money through the loving donations of others but He also has secured enough money in my account to make it so I do not have to work this summer (I also cannot go any where but that is ok....family time is good!)
3. God desires me to invest in others:
God has given me an opportunity to share about how He saved me from myself with a friend at home this summer.
Please continue to pray for me and my mind as I embark on this summer's journey~
Monday, January 17, 2011
The Beauty of Breathing
So this past weekend I had the pleasure of going to Edge Corps Preview for the Navigators and was faced with a lot to think about. One of the things that has been getting at me a lot lately is seeing everyone connect more deeply and me being left as if I do not matter. I talked to Alissa about this and one of the first things that popped into my head is that what Alissa was saying couldn't be true because I do not feel like God even exists and He doesn't speak to me. I was talking about this a couple of weeks ago with Michael and I never even placed that this simple "feeling" could be a lie.
Satan has decided that his way of getting me to not seek God as my everything is to make everything that happens to me daily mundane and normal. Not only has he succeeded in making feel like God is no longer speaking to me through His word but he has made it seem like nothing that happens in my life is of importance.
An example of this is breathing. Everyday and every night, every second of my life I am breathing. Air goes in my lungs and out, filling my blood with the necessary oxygen to keep my body functioning. I have come to see this act as simple and something I can do a part from God because I do it daily. As I was reading through Genesis and Joseph says in regard to being able to interpret Pharaoh's dream, "It is not me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer." (41:16) When I first read that I was like, "Oh, come on Joseph! You know you interpreted those other guys dreams and your own." Then it dawned on me: Joseph recognized that even the stuff he was capable of doing just normally came from God. I began to think about this truth in terms of breathing. I cannot breathe apart from my creator. Even if I could create some sort of contraption to continue breathing I could never create the air.
So after talking with Alissa as well as just reading the verses that the Preview had for us to read through I am challenging myself to view everything, even the simple ability to blink, as a God-given miracle. God is speaking to me even though Satan would love for me to think otherwise. God is loving me and He thinks enough of me to die for me so I must be a pretty cool person. People will forget to invite me to things and they are not being malicious, for the most part and definitely not in my friends group. And even if that were the case God satisfies and is the only thing I need. Community is great but it is horrible without God.
So that is my thought for the day. I am excited for this next semester and working through my new found truth daily as I interact with you all. God bless!
Satan has decided that his way of getting me to not seek God as my everything is to make everything that happens to me daily mundane and normal. Not only has he succeeded in making feel like God is no longer speaking to me through His word but he has made it seem like nothing that happens in my life is of importance.
An example of this is breathing. Everyday and every night, every second of my life I am breathing. Air goes in my lungs and out, filling my blood with the necessary oxygen to keep my body functioning. I have come to see this act as simple and something I can do a part from God because I do it daily. As I was reading through Genesis and Joseph says in regard to being able to interpret Pharaoh's dream, "It is not me; God will give Pharaoh a favorable answer." (41:16) When I first read that I was like, "Oh, come on Joseph! You know you interpreted those other guys dreams and your own." Then it dawned on me: Joseph recognized that even the stuff he was capable of doing just normally came from God. I began to think about this truth in terms of breathing. I cannot breathe apart from my creator. Even if I could create some sort of contraption to continue breathing I could never create the air.
So after talking with Alissa as well as just reading the verses that the Preview had for us to read through I am challenging myself to view everything, even the simple ability to blink, as a God-given miracle. God is speaking to me even though Satan would love for me to think otherwise. God is loving me and He thinks enough of me to die for me so I must be a pretty cool person. People will forget to invite me to things and they are not being malicious, for the most part and definitely not in my friends group. And even if that were the case God satisfies and is the only thing I need. Community is great but it is horrible without God.
So that is my thought for the day. I am excited for this next semester and working through my new found truth daily as I interact with you all. God bless!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)