First Week On!

I officially started my regular schedule this week.

I feel at home here. It's probably one of the best places I can be at this point in my life.
It's a chance for me to grow in my own faith outside of my own family and figure out how to reach out to people who are hurt and broken in a different enviornment than what I'm used to.

This week I've been going through Matthew 6:25-34 with one of the students. It has been such a good passage for me to go through. Its reminded me that I serve a God who cares about the details and who doesn't want me to be anxious about the little things.
It's too easy to be anxious and want to be "in control" of the situation. Which, if I really think about it, is where I am when I am anxious. If I truly was trusting in God I wouldn't be anxious.
It's a good reminder.

The students all are struggling with different things. Sometimes I wonder if I'm responding correctly to a situation. Reading through the Matthew passage has really helped to remind me to lean on God more and take my need for wisdom to Him on a daily basis. 

Orientation week

My first couple of days:

I was pretty much just trying to get my bearings and trying to soak up where I was, what exactly I am supposed to be, and what am I doing? Is this crazy?
   It has gotten better though. The fog is beginning to clear and I'm just beginning to see kind of how things work around here at The Ranch (which is what everyone around here calls Christian Encounter Ministries). (I have more info on my blog post Crazy Stuff Happening All At Once!)
     The staff and interns are all very welcoming and I feel like I've transferred from one family to another. There is a lot of people here who are more than happy to help you whether it's with something emotional going on or just a practical day to day question. This is just the place where I need to be right now. I don't know how God is going to use it in the future but I do know that He will and I'm content to be along for the adventure that He is taking me on.

Good-byes and New Beginnings

I hate goodbyes. Especially ones with family or people who feel like family. I melt into puddles of tears when the time comes.

It doesn't matter how excited I am for leaving I know that I will have to leave those people behind. And that's tough.
    A wise friend of mine said something really encouraging. She said that while we are here we have to endure separation, pain, and loneliness but when we go to meet Jesus all of this will be done away with. It is painful now but it will not last for those of us who are Christ's.
     It brought back to mind why I'm here. I'm here to be a witness for Christ for His glory so that others might know Him. Then they will get to enjoy life without those awful things and enjoy God for Himself.
    So I'm here at Christian Encounter Ministries. It's a new and exciting chapter of my life. Every new chapter comes with its challenges but they also come with thier benefits.
    I'm excited to be here and to be getting to know people and getting to know how this all works.
It's time for a new beginning!

5 Games that are better than Monopoly

As I'm getting ready to leave I'm thinking about the things that I might potentially miss. One of those things is the people that I will leave behind. (Family and friends.) But opportunities like this don't show up at your doorstep everyday; and when God calls I've learned to listen.

Another thing that I may or may not miss but I thought was worth sharing are 5 of my favorite games to play with my family. And yes, they are

Game #1: Dutch Blitz

This is a fun and fast paced game that is very portable and easy to learn (which also makes it easy to teach). Learn more about the game Here.

Game #2: Carcassonne

We happen to have this box and so if we get board of playing the original game we can change it up with one of the other variations. I personally like the original base game the best.
The goal of the game is to be the person with the most points by the end of the game. This process of determining points can be rather tricky so the first couple of games you are going to want the rules close by. Better yet have someone who is familiar with the game and point system walk you through it as you play your first couple of games. Learn more about the game here.

Game #3: Settlers of Catan

This game is about learning to use your resources to build your empire! Mua hahaha ha! Actually it's about being the first person to get to 10 victory points. You can gain those points through several different venues and need to use both strategy, and your paying attention skills to keep your opponents from getting the upper hand. It also helps if your good at trading with people. For more info go Here.

Game #4: Quelf

This game is one that I have found you can't play with every group of people. Its really fun, pretty crazy, and gets you laughing out loud. I reccomend this game for parties with a good mix of people and large families who like to laugh at themselves every once in a while. I do not reccomend this for smaller groups (3 or less and I really reccomend playing with at least 5) but that is just my recommendation. Use your own judgement when choosing whether to play with a particular group or not. Learn more Here.

And last but not least Game #5: Killer Bunnies

This is one of our family favorites. The goal of the game is to be the one with the magic carrot. You also are trying to keep at least one of your bunnies alive and kill off your opponents bunnies by using some of the most rediculous weapons known to bunny kind.

Learn more (maybe) here.

Go forth and enjoy your games

I'm Back!

Hello, it's been a while.

It's been since last year which reminds me....

It's so exciting to be in this new year! I'm going to be going to CEM this year which I am totally stoked about. (I'm going to meet new people!) 

Here is a little spur of the moment Poem that I wrote:

I still have a race to run,

Still have the light of today's sun,

Still have Christ to look to.

He perfects my faith through,

The toils and struggles of this life.

Pain may come with its deadly knife,

Christ will strengthen and heal my wounds,

Help me to rise again and continue on.

The sin of this life clings so close,

The flithy stench of it is so gross.

It's wieght is cleansed from me,

From it I am truely free!

I run and run and run,

For my race is not yet done.

I look to the Cross for there lies my hope.

I look at the joy with which my savior could cope,

With his beautiful, horrible, life-giving, death

And for others he used his final breath.

He is now seated at God's right hand,

Where before Him every nation will stand.

Until that glorious day that I long to see,

I will run the race set out for me. 

(Poem inspired by Hebrews 12:1,2)

It of all of the verses that I know comes back to me again and again. I say it's my life verse probably because of that.
I am running a race and Jesus is my prize, my treasure, my valued possession. I wish I could say that I always have this mentality but, in all honesty, I don't. It is cool when I do have this mentality because it refocuses me on what my real goal in life is.
It isn't to have the perfect life (which too often becomes the goal). It's to know Christ and to love and pursue Him.

Hopefully I can pass this vision of knowing Jesus like that on to others this next year. 

Christmas Slam

Hello world. Things have been pretty crazy everywhere, I'm sure. Let me share a little bit of some of that entropy going on in Dicksonland.

First we had a debate tournament where two of my brothers competed. It was a long day but worth it.

The M.D. of Debate with his very pretty partner

(Left to right) Big D and his partner standing next to the first place novice team for this particular tournament. (Big D and his partner placed second, whoo hoo!) 

Then we have been trying to get our Christmas presents finished and mailed to all of the family that will not be local this Christmas. Of course I wait until the last minute to come up with gifts but hey at least I got all of the gifts done for the immediate family plus most of the local group. I did things backwards this year, because that just makes so much sense.

Oh well. I still ended up with some pretty cute gifts.
My favorites are below.

Bags full of different kinds of "snowman poop" 

We found the idea on Pinterest. The original idea had a box of tic tacs in a little card saying "Heard you've been naughty so here's the scoop, All you get for Christmas is snowman poop". We decided to find 12 different white edible things (one for each kid at our house) and package it like above. This is going to a particularly ornery Grandpa who will appreciate it.

Dressed up chocolate

I took two chocolate bars and wrapped them in plain white paper. I put a fuzzy sock on top of  the wrapped chocolate and decorated it with a piece of ribbon and drew a face on it. This is going to our grandma (who's husband is getting the snowman poop). She also is getting other snowman inspired gifts from the other grandkids in our family. (Hopefully she doesn't read this blog, otherwise I'm in trouble.)
I found another project that the youngest two could do with a little help which I thought was cute.

 

They are handprint snowmen ornaments. So cute!

Wednesday was the last day of my Literary Analysis class that I taught this year. I'm so glad I taught it and would definitely look into teaching it again if I was in a position to do so and God provided the families who would want that. I just won't be for the rest of this school year. 

Something I'll Miss

Today was the last day for a Good News Club. It's hard to look at the kids that you've been with for what feels like a long time and say that you have to move on.

God's moving me on to other things (see my post Crazy Stuff Happening all at Once!). He's also moving the other teachers on to other things. I think it's God saying that it's time for this Club to turn over a new leaf and get started fresh.
We don't always understand why he does what He does but I do know that every single one of those kids know who Jesus is and why He came. Without fail we presented the gospel to those kids every week and even had some of the kids get up sometimes and share the gospel in front of the whole club. It really is cool to have been a part of that.
I love these kids and know that God brought them into my life for a reason and now it's time for me to go. This is perhaps the hardest thing to leave because I know that some of these kids only get Good News Club and that's it. No Church on Sunday, no youth group on Wednesday, nothing. Just me and Brenda, and Mrs. M who they heard talk about God and Jesus for this short time.
I loved the simple but challenging questions they would give to me. I love the noisy boisterous nature of some of them and the timid quiet nature of others.
 It was such a blessing to work with these kids and see some of them go from crazy ADD bouncing off of the walls can't sit still for more than 10 seconds at a time kids, to kids who would actually listen to a story. (Granted they were still the most wiggly ones but at least they were listening). I'll miss some in particular. (I have a soft spot for the "naughty" kids, probably because they of everyone know that they are sinners and need to know that they are loved anyway. Not just by people, who will fail them, but by God, who never will.)
Change is good but it doesn't always come easy.