One thing that really hit home for me this summer was realizing my value in Christ. I have heard over and over again how much God loves us, you know, even if I was the only person who would come to Christ through His death, He would still do it. I've heard it tons of times, and, although I've always known that and thought I believed it, this summer the fact the I am His beloved became something I truly believe.
This lack of belief in this amazing truth, I guess, was probably facilitated by the fact that I have never felt like "that girl." You know, the one who everyone wants to be with all the time, the one who has a boy who's face lights up when she walks into a room, or the one who can't help but hit the game winning shot every time. I've always felt on the outskirts, kinda just hanging around, there to call when you need me. But this summer as I began to truly grasp what it meant to be His, I realized I am the "that girl" to God. One night I got this picture in my head, you know in old movies or Leave it to Beaver type shows when people would go to a barbecue or something, the men would always be out back at the grill and the women would be in the kitchen or on the patio getting everything ready. The men would be talking about sports or news and eventually conversation turns to the women. I see God there and one of the other guys asks, "So, which one is yours?" pointing to the women, and I see God's face lighting up with a huge smile coming across His face and He's pointing me out, "That one, right there, she's mine." He can hardly contain Himself; He's so happy I'm His. That blew me away!! Some of you are probably thinking I'm crazy, but for me, that picture is completely God given and exactly what I needed to understand I'm His.
Anyway, the reason I'm telling you this is because of another story. This weekend I went to Madison's Crusade leadership retreat. All the branches of Crusade on campus got together to look forward to this school year. One thing we talked about was "Natural Mode Evangelism" which basically is living in such a way that you are evangelizing simply by the way you live and naturally turning to Christ in your everyday conversation. After we discussed this and some other ways we could live for God this semester, we prayed over every "topic" we had discussed. As we were praying over living in Natural Mode Evangelism, God put another picture in my head. This scene very similar to the one I described already, but this time it's me who's love cannot be contained. No matter who I was talking to or what we were talking about, I couldn't help but tell them how in love I am with the great guy I know named Jesus. They would see the smile that couldn't be wiped from my face and needed to know what put it there. He was always on my mind and my love for Him was basically oozing out, everyone I talked to was like, "Man, she's got it bad."
That's how I want to live. I want to be the epitome of Natural Mode Evangelism. I want everyone I come in contact with to know I'm falling madly in love with the Savior and Creator of the world! I want to be that girl.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
fail....
So, I'm going to be honest with you all. Even though God has blessed me with a lot of great stuff this last week, I feel like these last few days have been a losing battle with Satan. I don't know that I can even put a finger on what's going on in my head or, maybe more importantly, in my heart, but Satan has been on the attack and I feel like I am failing.
Before leaving Project we basically took an entire night to talk about how coming home could be stressful, re-entry stress as Crusade has so fittingly termed it. The first week or so I was home, I felt like I pretty much dodged most of the stress and thought I was out of the clear, but the last few days, I feel like I walk around the house looking for a fight. Basically I wake up and I am already in a bad mood....which makes me more mad because I feel dumb for being mad about nothing, but I choose to stay in a bad mood, because that's of course the logical thing to do. And then there is Satan lying to me, and me stinkin' believing him. I hate when I buy into Satan's lies. I hate how easily he gets me to question myself, other people, my relationships with other people, anything! How can I go through an entire summer like the one I just had and grow so much, but still be so vulnerable to Satan's lies?
I don't know the answer to that, but I do have this that I found yesterday while reading:
Psalm 9:9-10
The LORD also will be a stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
And those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
On a slightly more upbeat note, I got to see Alex, Jake, and Allie baptized Sunday, what a blessing!! I'm so excited to see them giving Him everything :)
Before leaving Project we basically took an entire night to talk about how coming home could be stressful, re-entry stress as Crusade has so fittingly termed it. The first week or so I was home, I felt like I pretty much dodged most of the stress and thought I was out of the clear, but the last few days, I feel like I walk around the house looking for a fight. Basically I wake up and I am already in a bad mood....which makes me more mad because I feel dumb for being mad about nothing, but I choose to stay in a bad mood, because that's of course the logical thing to do. And then there is Satan lying to me, and me stinkin' believing him. I hate when I buy into Satan's lies. I hate how easily he gets me to question myself, other people, my relationships with other people, anything! How can I go through an entire summer like the one I just had and grow so much, but still be so vulnerable to Satan's lies?
I don't know the answer to that, but I do have this that I found yesterday while reading:
Psalm 9:9-10
The LORD also will be a stronghold for the oppressed,
A stronghold in times of trouble;
And those who know Your name will put their trust in You,
For You, O LORD, have not forsaken those who seek You.
Father,
I know that you have never forsaken me, You are always there even when I don't feel You or when I feel like ignoring You. Father, please be my Stronghold. I love You and want to live for You, only You, I don't want to fall into the enemies lies.
On a slightly more upbeat note, I got to see Alex, Jake, and Allie baptized Sunday, what a blessing!! I'm so excited to see them giving Him everything :)
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Just what I needed
Since being home from Project, the thing that has taken the most getting used to for me, is not having the community of 45 athletes and friends running around the house. Don't get me wrong, I love hanging with my family, but it's just not been the same. I miss my project family, and honestly, I'm a little bored without having ministry stuff planned every night.
Luckily, God always knows exactly what we need and He's blessed me with a great week! Even though adjusting has still been a little rough, getting to begin building community and step back into life here has been a lot of fun.
Tuesday I met up with Gina to go to the Brewers' game......unfortunately, the game was terrible, but getting to see Gina was great!!! The more friends from school I see, the more I am actually getting excited to start up classes again.
Wednesday I got to have coffee at Krista's with Miss Valerie Schultz :) It was a lot of fun to have a coffee date again, they were like an everyday essential in Colorado, but have been few and far between since. Honestly, if coffee dates (or your own unique social outing) aren't a regular part of your week, you should definitely consider them. It's so nice to sit and connect with a friend one-on-one and just talk about life, what you can see God doing (or wish you would see Him doing), even what your struggling with. The more I grow with Christ, the more I know I need to be surrounded and supported by others in order to fully experience Him.
Thursday I filled up a day running around in Madison, and ended it with seeing the movie (500) Days of Summer with Jillian (making this the first time in well over a year I got to see my new roomie) Great movie, I suggest it to anyone looking for a laugh and a cute story.
And today, I got to sell Threads of Hope bracelets all day with Mom at the Critical Mass concert at Paquette Park. I love selling Threads!!!! I have such a heart for that ministry, it makes me so happy to see people getting excited to help families an ocean away!!! Every time I talk about the Threads story, I am reminded about God's sovereignty and control. Although these are attributes I have had trouble comprehending and understanding this summer, when I see how God has worked His perfect timing in this organization, I am encouraged!
So yeah, God is good, imagine that.....
PS I also heard a bunch of sweet new bands at Critical Mass, here are links to a couple of my favorites and also a link for more information on Threads of Hope:
www.threadsofhope.com.ph
www.myspace.com/Loftland
www.brightlightparade.com
PPS As I have been talking with my friends from Project and living life myself, it is apparent the Satan is working hard to get in the way of and mess up some of the amazingness that has taken place this summer. If you wouldn't mind praying for strength and discernment and courage for all of us as we continue moving forward to school, I would love that!
Luckily, God always knows exactly what we need and He's blessed me with a great week! Even though adjusting has still been a little rough, getting to begin building community and step back into life here has been a lot of fun.
Tuesday I met up with Gina to go to the Brewers' game......unfortunately, the game was terrible, but getting to see Gina was great!!! The more friends from school I see, the more I am actually getting excited to start up classes again.
Wednesday I got to have coffee at Krista's with Miss Valerie Schultz :) It was a lot of fun to have a coffee date again, they were like an everyday essential in Colorado, but have been few and far between since. Honestly, if coffee dates (or your own unique social outing) aren't a regular part of your week, you should definitely consider them. It's so nice to sit and connect with a friend one-on-one and just talk about life, what you can see God doing (or wish you would see Him doing), even what your struggling with. The more I grow with Christ, the more I know I need to be surrounded and supported by others in order to fully experience Him.
Thursday I filled up a day running around in Madison, and ended it with seeing the movie (500) Days of Summer with Jillian (making this the first time in well over a year I got to see my new roomie) Great movie, I suggest it to anyone looking for a laugh and a cute story.
And today, I got to sell Threads of Hope bracelets all day with Mom at the Critical Mass concert at Paquette Park. I love selling Threads!!!! I have such a heart for that ministry, it makes me so happy to see people getting excited to help families an ocean away!!! Every time I talk about the Threads story, I am reminded about God's sovereignty and control. Although these are attributes I have had trouble comprehending and understanding this summer, when I see how God has worked His perfect timing in this organization, I am encouraged!
So yeah, God is good, imagine that.....
PS I also heard a bunch of sweet new bands at Critical Mass, here are links to a couple of my favorites and also a link for more information on Threads of Hope:
www.threadsofhope.com.ph
www.myspace.com/Loftland
www.brightlightparade.com
PPS As I have been talking with my friends from Project and living life myself, it is apparent the Satan is working hard to get in the way of and mess up some of the amazingness that has taken place this summer. If you wouldn't mind praying for strength and discernment and courage for all of us as we continue moving forward to school, I would love that!
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
"Sometimes facing reality can be quite discouraging."
The title of today's blog is a quote from the book "How Could a Loving God...?" by Ken Ham which I picked up last weekend during our family trip to the Creation Museum. Ham confronts the book's sub-title, Powerful Answers on Suffering and Loss, by combining Scriptural references and his own experience of dealing with the untimely death of his younger brother and ministry partner, Rob Ham.
As I began to dig into the book, I was honestly pretty disappointed. Ham takes a majority of the first three chapters, almost 60 pages, to tackle to logic of pain and suffering in this world. He begins in Genesis and moves through the fall of man and explains how sin is the ultimate reason for suffering. He reiterates over and over that when we look at loss and suffering through a "big picture" perspective, uncertainty surrounding trials seems almost silly. Though true and logical, these explanations don't offer a lot of insight into the more emotional and "human" side of suffering, which were promised in the extremely moving foreword and summary on the back of the book.
This morning, the light at the end of this "tunnel of logic" finally presented itself as Ham began to echo my own thoughts:
Ken continues the chapter discussing how some sins do see direct discipline on earth, but most disease and suffering are "simply" caused by sin in general, and though there are times when we suffer things that we didn't "earn" we are never sinless anyway. He continues this line of thinking for a few pages (now here's the real reason I am even discussing this), and makes this conclusion:
ay as I sat at Krista's reading this, I couldn't help but identify with poor Spock, torn between Vulcan logic and human emotion. Yes, what Mr. Ham is saying here is true, we deserve death (the ultimate suffering) for our sins, Romans 3:23 lays that out clearly, but do I really believe that anyone deserves the slow and painful death Rob Ham experienced? Could I look at a twenty-something girl torn apart by an abusive relationship or young father facing the loss of a premature baby and tell them that I truly believe because they are sinful they deserve what they are experiencing? The logic is sound, the scripture leads us to a sensible conclusion, but I don't think I can separate my emotion from this one. Suffering doesn't compute for me; I don't like when life hurts. I know it's necessary, I could probably even lead you through the apologetics of it all, but I don't think I will ever understand the "senseless," those things I see on the nightly news or read in the papers that make my heart break.
As I began to dig into the book, I was honestly pretty disappointed. Ham takes a majority of the first three chapters, almost 60 pages, to tackle to logic of pain and suffering in this world. He begins in Genesis and moves through the fall of man and explains how sin is the ultimate reason for suffering. He reiterates over and over that when we look at loss and suffering through a "big picture" perspective, uncertainty surrounding trials seems almost silly. Though true and logical, these explanations don't offer a lot of insight into the more emotional and "human" side of suffering, which were promised in the extremely moving foreword and summary on the back of the book.
This morning, the light at the end of this "tunnel of logic" finally presented itself as Ham began to echo my own thoughts:
While the "big picture" put "the question" into a biblical framework, many other issues needed to be faced: What then should one expect out of life? Is this fair?Throughout this chapter, Ham looked for advice in coping with his brother's degenerative and terminal brain disease by actually listening to a sermon Rob had given years earlier that focused on sin, sickness, and healing. Rob began this sermon much like his brother began this book, explaining that all sickness and death on earth is caused by sin, and although God does not promise exemption from disease to believers, He does "promise to comfort and strengthen us." Rob explains that "outside the Garden, the consequences of sin [not God's perfect design] dictate our destiny."
Ken continues the chapter discussing how some sins do see direct discipline on earth, but most disease and suffering are "simply" caused by sin in general, and though there are times when we suffer things that we didn't "earn" we are never sinless anyway. He continues this line of thinking for a few pages (now here's the real reason I am even discussing this), and makes this conclusion:
Fueled by frustration and feelings, these thoughts were tossed around in my mind. But as I continued to stand back and see the big picture (putting our specific situation into the broader biblical perspective), I was led to a conclusion that reflected God's perspective rather than my human one. Did Rob deserve to suffer the way he did? The answer is "yes."Last night I had the privilege of seeing Star Trek at the drive-in with Mom and Nick, and tod
ay as I sat at Krista's reading this, I couldn't help but identify with poor Spock, torn between Vulcan logic and human emotion. Yes, what Mr. Ham is saying here is true, we deserve death (the ultimate suffering) for our sins, Romans 3:23 lays that out clearly, but do I really believe that anyone deserves the slow and painful death Rob Ham experienced? Could I look at a twenty-something girl torn apart by an abusive relationship or young father facing the loss of a premature baby and tell them that I truly believe because they are sinful they deserve what they are experiencing? The logic is sound, the scripture leads us to a sensible conclusion, but I don't think I can separate my emotion from this one. Suffering doesn't compute for me; I don't like when life hurts. I know it's necessary, I could probably even lead you through the apologetics of it all, but I don't think I will ever understand the "senseless," those things I see on the nightly news or read in the papers that make my heart break.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
Since I started school, it has really been on my heart to read through the whole Bible. It’s something I have never done before, but seems like an essential for anyone who is going to claim the entire thing as what they base their whole life on, you know. Freshmen year I made it through the New Testament and I started going through the Old Testament as a counselor at Crescent Lake, but got lost somewhere in the Law as I returned to school. So, I decided last week to pick this feat up again, this time following a one-year plan which will hopefully offer a little more accountability. Every day, I will get to read some Old and New Testament and a little of both Psalms and Proverbs. I really like this format.
Tuesday morning, part of my reading was the first two chapters of Matthew. Obviously a part of the Bible I know pretty well, I don’t think I could count the number of times I have heard the Christmas story. As I was reading through the story of the Magi traveling to see Jesus, I was stopped in my tracks by a verse I think I have probably skipped over every time I read these chapters:
Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.
When I read this verse, immediately I got this picture in my mind of these old guys with long beards and camels jumping around in the desert hugging each other and running around in circles, ecstatic. Now as I think back to it, I smile a little. I really do love this picture though. These guys had been studying and anticipating and waiting and probably praying for their King to appear, and now, when the prophecy begins to be fulfilled, they are rejoicing exceedingly with great joy. They didn’t doubt, they weren’t like, “Well, I dunno, maybe that’s the star, but probably not, let’s wait to hear it through the grapevine….” They were so convinced that God had finally “made good” on His promise that they immediately traveled hundreds of miles carrying burdensome and crazy expensive gifts for a baby they knew God was going to raise up.
As I sat back with my biscotti and coffee to reflect on this, I thought about how I respond to God’s moving in my life. Even thinking back to April and May when I was waiting for God to show me what He wanted for me this summer, when He finally did, I did not respond with rejoicing exceedingly with great joy. To be quite honest, I was probably a little mad at God for not following through with what I had planned for my summer. (Now I realize I was crazy for ever questioning God leading me to FoCo, however that is irrelevant to this rambling) But I had prayed for God to show me a clear path. To close doors and only open one, and when He did, it took me a while to praise Him, to even acknowledge that He had in fact answered my prayer exactly the way I asked. I had prayed that God would put me where He would use and teach me the most, I knew wherever God would lead, life would be good, but I chose to not focus on where God could be taking me, but on what I knew I would miss.
Do you think Jesus birth came at the perfect time for the wise men, did they miss anything in their lives because they had to leave to see a baby? Did any of them have weekends with the family or fishing buddies coming up? I’m guessing yeah. Their plans were probably messed up by the appearing of the star they had so eagerly awaited, but instead of focusing on those things they could be missing, they embraced this direction from God, gave everything they had and went.
How can I be that eager to serve God and offer my best when He throws me a curve ball and changes my plans?
Some of you may be thinking, well the wise men’s “curve ball” was good, they got to meet Jesus, what happens when the curveball is cancer or something that hurts to deal with or isn’t fun? Honestly, I’m kinda thinking that myself, but I’m also thinking should the circumstance God has me in or is leading me into change my reaction to His clear hand in my life? How often do I look at curve balls that most people would say are good, but hate them because of what they could mess up? What does it look like to respond to hard things I know are from Him with exceeding rejoicing? Is it possible not to fight God, even just a little, when life hurts, when I don’t want to go where He is taking me, when the curve ball not only gets thrown at me, but hits me in the face?
I don't have the answers to any of these questions tonight, but if God blesses me with the insight, I will be sure to let you know what He says.
Tuesday morning, part of my reading was the first two chapters of Matthew. Obviously a part of the Bible I know pretty well, I don’t think I could count the number of times I have heard the Christmas story. As I was reading through the story of the Magi traveling to see Jesus, I was stopped in my tracks by a verse I think I have probably skipped over every time I read these chapters:
Matthew 2:10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.
When I read this verse, immediately I got this picture in my mind of these old guys with long beards and camels jumping around in the desert hugging each other and running around in circles, ecstatic. Now as I think back to it, I smile a little. I really do love this picture though. These guys had been studying and anticipating and waiting and probably praying for their King to appear, and now, when the prophecy begins to be fulfilled, they are rejoicing exceedingly with great joy. They didn’t doubt, they weren’t like, “Well, I dunno, maybe that’s the star, but probably not, let’s wait to hear it through the grapevine….” They were so convinced that God had finally “made good” on His promise that they immediately traveled hundreds of miles carrying burdensome and crazy expensive gifts for a baby they knew God was going to raise up.
As I sat back with my biscotti and coffee to reflect on this, I thought about how I respond to God’s moving in my life. Even thinking back to April and May when I was waiting for God to show me what He wanted for me this summer, when He finally did, I did not respond with rejoicing exceedingly with great joy. To be quite honest, I was probably a little mad at God for not following through with what I had planned for my summer. (Now I realize I was crazy for ever questioning God leading me to FoCo, however that is irrelevant to this rambling) But I had prayed for God to show me a clear path. To close doors and only open one, and when He did, it took me a while to praise Him, to even acknowledge that He had in fact answered my prayer exactly the way I asked. I had prayed that God would put me where He would use and teach me the most, I knew wherever God would lead, life would be good, but I chose to not focus on where God could be taking me, but on what I knew I would miss.
Do you think Jesus birth came at the perfect time for the wise men, did they miss anything in their lives because they had to leave to see a baby? Did any of them have weekends with the family or fishing buddies coming up? I’m guessing yeah. Their plans were probably messed up by the appearing of the star they had so eagerly awaited, but instead of focusing on those things they could be missing, they embraced this direction from God, gave everything they had and went.
How can I be that eager to serve God and offer my best when He throws me a curve ball and changes my plans?
Some of you may be thinking, well the wise men’s “curve ball” was good, they got to meet Jesus, what happens when the curveball is cancer or something that hurts to deal with or isn’t fun? Honestly, I’m kinda thinking that myself, but I’m also thinking should the circumstance God has me in or is leading me into change my reaction to His clear hand in my life? How often do I look at curve balls that most people would say are good, but hate them because of what they could mess up? What does it look like to respond to hard things I know are from Him with exceeding rejoicing? Is it possible not to fight God, even just a little, when life hurts, when I don’t want to go where He is taking me, when the curve ball not only gets thrown at me, but hits me in the face?
I don't have the answers to any of these questions tonight, but if God blesses me with the insight, I will be sure to let you know what He says.
Father,
Thank you so much for having a perfect plan for my life. So often I think I have it figured out and try to go on my own, without You. I pray that as I finish summer and return to school, that I would let You lead me. God, even when I am unsure or scared of where I am going, I pray that I would follow You. Please soften my heart so as I follow I would be rejoicing exceedingly with great joy, even when life hurts. I am Yours and I want to follow You with everything.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Definitely not the End
My dad asked me when I got home when I would be publishing my last blog and the only way I could think to respond was I don't know. Thank you all so much for following me this summer as I walked with God in Fort Collins. I have loved being able to share His work in my life with you all and plan on continuing for whoever will listen. Honestly, blogging is as much for me as for anyone who is reading right now. Many times this summer I didn't even realize what I was feeling, thinking, or seeing until I told you all. I love being able to share with others how great of a God I serve, so if you love reading about Him "Awesome!" and if not, then thanks for following this summer and feel free to come back whenever. I am planning on posting a couple times a week as school starts, maybe more maybe less depending on how everything goes. Feel free to keep commenting and bouncing ideas around as I continue to do the same for you all. I love you guys, thanks for all the love, support, and prayers!!!
The Last Week on Project
Hey everyone!! I am officially back in Wisconsin as of 5 AM Saturday morning. There is so much that happened the last week of project, I can't wait to tell you all about it. I couldn't pull myself away from everyone at the house in the last week to sit at Starbucks to grab internet time, so now you will just get one, long post.
Our last weekend in Fort Collins was so good! Saturday was a free day, so I went to Denver with Sally to watch Ben, Taylor, Jason, Lauren, and Jenny play in a 3v3 soccer tournament. They did so well, and it was such a blast! The team finished the tournament in third!
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That night, we also got to stay in Denver to watch Colorado's MLS team, the Rapids. I have never been to a pro soccer game, so it was a new experience and a lot of fun. The game was great, the Rapids won 4-0.
Sunday after church we all went back to the Poudre one more time. Over the last month or so of project, people began talking about being baptized before we left, so 14 people got baptized Sunday and I was one of them. Though I was baptized when I was younger, I made a new commitment to Christ on Sunday. This summer changed my life and my commitment to Him is so much greater than it has ever been. I realized this summer what it really means to surrender it all to Him and truly give Him my life. God put it on my heart to acknowledge my complete commitment to Him with baptism. It was AMAZING!!! God has used so many of the people who surrounded me this summer to change my life, and being surrounded by them on Sunday in one of the most beautiful places I've ever known, made His presence there completely evident.
On Monday, we started our last week with a talk from Amado about having a Heart for the Future. This is a talk that I was really excited for! As part of the leadership team, one of our jobs was to schedule the evenings during the week. When we sat down to do the schedule 3 weeks ago, we thought it would be sweet to have our last talk back at the place this summer really began, on top of Golgotha. It was great! Amado did an awesome job getting us ready to go home and use everything God equipped us with this summer and getting to worship and fellowship one last time on Golgotha was the perfect way to start our week of saying goodbye.
Tuesday we had our final banquet at the Tapestry House. It was beautiful!! I don't know how our banquet committee worked it out, but it was a great place to have one last party. After many many pictures and a dinner filled with skits, memories, and a great slide show of pretty much everything that happened this summer, we had one more dance party. So fun!
By Wednesday and Thursday, it started to hit us all the we were actually leaving Friday morning, so the mood at any given time in the house moved between reminiscing, looking forward to being home, and dreading the moment when we would leave 708 City Park for good. Most of us, including myself, tried to fit as many lunch/coffee/walking in the park dates into our last couple days as we could. Spending quality time the the people God put in our lives this summer definitely took precedence over silly things like packing or sleep.
The relationships I built this summer are unlike any I've ever known. This last week I thought more about how Colorado was exactly where I was supposed to be this summer. God taught me so much, refined me, and worked me more into the woman He created me to be, and He surrounded me with just the right people to walk alongside or just ahead of me the whole time. It hit me sometime in the middle of the week, that Fort Collins was also exactly where 44 other college athletes were supposed to be this summer. When I though about how God had perfect plans for all of us and unique ways He worked in each one of us the over last 8 weeks left me in amazement one more time. God worked so much in just 8 weeks and one house, I love it, that's all I really know to say!
I won't lie, leaving Friday morning was tough. I am so excited to be home and was excited to go home, but I wasn't excited to leave. Saying last good byes and giving hugs to everyone one last time, especially without knowing when we would be able to see everyone next, was hard. We all walked out the door with promises of following on facebook and skype and texting, but we all know that this summer can never be replicated. I love that and I hate it so much. This summer was probably the best of my life and will keep that status for a long time I think. I can't imagine me without this experience but I know I can't live on project forever, so as young Wilbur Robinson might suggest, I will keep moving forward, falling deeper in love with my King, doing what He calls me to do. I'll keep messing up and drowning in grace. I can't wait to see how He will use this summer for His glory.
Our last weekend in Fort Collins was so good! Saturday was a free day, so I went to Denver with Sally to watch Ben, Taylor, Jason, Lauren, and Jenny play in a 3v3 soccer tournament. They did so well, and it was such a blast! The team finished the tournament in third!
.JPG)
That night, we also got to stay in Denver to watch Colorado's MLS team, the Rapids. I have never been to a pro soccer game, so it was a new experience and a lot of fun. The game was great, the Rapids won 4-0.
Sunday after church we all went back to the Poudre one more time. Over the last month or so of project, people began talking about being baptized before we left, so 14 people got baptized Sunday and I was one of them. Though I was baptized when I was younger, I made a new commitment to Christ on Sunday. This summer changed my life and my commitment to Him is so much greater than it has ever been. I realized this summer what it really means to surrender it all to Him and truly give Him my life. God put it on my heart to acknowledge my complete commitment to Him with baptism. It was AMAZING!!! God has used so many of the people who surrounded me this summer to change my life, and being surrounded by them on Sunday in one of the most beautiful places I've ever known, made His presence there completely evident.
On Monday, we started our last week with a talk from Amado about having a Heart for the Future. This is a talk that I was really excited for! As part of the leadership team, one of our jobs was to schedule the evenings during the week. When we sat down to do the schedule 3 weeks ago, we thought it would be sweet to have our last talk back at the place this summer really began, on top of Golgotha. It was great! Amado did an awesome job getting us ready to go home and use everything God equipped us with this summer and getting to worship and fellowship one last time on Golgotha was the perfect way to start our week of saying goodbye.
Tuesday we had our final banquet at the Tapestry House. It was beautiful!! I don't know how our banquet committee worked it out, but it was a great place to have one last party. After many many pictures and a dinner filled with skits, memories, and a great slide show of pretty much everything that happened this summer, we had one more dance party. So fun!
By Wednesday and Thursday, it started to hit us all the we were actually leaving Friday morning, so the mood at any given time in the house moved between reminiscing, looking forward to being home, and dreading the moment when we would leave 708 City Park for good. Most of us, including myself, tried to fit as many lunch/coffee/walking in the park dates into our last couple days as we could. Spending quality time the the people God put in our lives this summer definitely took precedence over silly things like packing or sleep.
The relationships I built this summer are unlike any I've ever known. This last week I thought more about how Colorado was exactly where I was supposed to be this summer. God taught me so much, refined me, and worked me more into the woman He created me to be, and He surrounded me with just the right people to walk alongside or just ahead of me the whole time. It hit me sometime in the middle of the week, that Fort Collins was also exactly where 44 other college athletes were supposed to be this summer. When I though about how God had perfect plans for all of us and unique ways He worked in each one of us the over last 8 weeks left me in amazement one more time. God worked so much in just 8 weeks and one house, I love it, that's all I really know to say!
I won't lie, leaving Friday morning was tough. I am so excited to be home and was excited to go home, but I wasn't excited to leave. Saying last good byes and giving hugs to everyone one last time, especially without knowing when we would be able to see everyone next, was hard. We all walked out the door with promises of following on facebook and skype and texting, but we all know that this summer can never be replicated. I love that and I hate it so much. This summer was probably the best of my life and will keep that status for a long time I think. I can't imagine me without this experience but I know I can't live on project forever, so as young Wilbur Robinson might suggest, I will keep moving forward, falling deeper in love with my King, doing what He calls me to do. I'll keep messing up and drowning in grace. I can't wait to see how He will use this summer for His glory.
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