Camp Loucon

Lauren and I just got back from spending a few days as counselors at Camp Loucon in Leitchfield, KY. We had the honor of working with 3rd and 4th graders at a Discovery Camp for 3 days and were primarily responsible for investing in 6 little girls. We had so much fun and loved getting to connect with all of the campers...the kids were all awesome and so much fun to be around! It was great getting to sing worship songs with them and tell them about how much God loves them. Listening to their prayers melted my heart; they were so precious and I loved hearing them talk about seeing God in His creation (the frogs, the crickets, the thunder and lightning, etc). We laughed so hard at all the funny things they said, especially when our little girls had to pee outside on our deck due to the bad storm....such a funny scene and my how they were such good sports! I just love the age they are at...old enough to engage in conversatation, listen, and learn (they are like little sponges) but little enough to be so sweet, innocent, and silly. I'm thankful they weren't at that "I'm too cool for you" stage! Instead, they hung all over us like little monkeys, wanted constant piggyback rides, made-up handshakes, and lots and lots of hugs...so precious :)

Lauren and I learned more "secret" handshakes than we can count and did some ridiculous things...we saw a GIANT spider in the girl's bathroom, had to evacuate our cabin at 10:30 at night to seek shelter due to a tornado warning, went on a hike and covered our faces in "warrior paint," and played all kinds of games with the kiddos. Although we didn't enjoy the "roughing it" part of things (the bugs and lack of showers haha), it was SOO worth it and I definitely want to go back next year...maybe as a co-dean with Lauren. Camp was wonderful and I'm so thankful for the opportunity we had to show and tell our new friends about the love of our Heavenly Father! So many great times and memories that will stick with me for a long, long time.

Lexington, Weather, & Woodhill

Yesterday, I was able to spend the day in Lexington while my sister had her Freshman Advising Conference (FACO). While Mom and Emi were tied up all day, I decided to take advantage of every minute I had in town and got to see so many dear friends! Devon and I grabbed lunch then walked around a nearby park (and...got booted off the teeter totter by a 7-year old!). Then, I met with Janelle at CSF and got to visit with her for a bit which was wonderful. After that, I had the opportunity to visit with my sweet friends at Woodhill (where I do Serve the City with Southland every Monday night during the school year).

On my way over to the neighborhood, the skies began to get super dark and a few rain drops fell onto my windshield. As I drove, I prayed the Lord would spare us the rain and that He would keep me safe and bless my visit with Gerri and her precious girls. When I was about five minutes away from their house, I got a text from UK Alert saying, "URGENT! The National Weather Service has issued a TORNADO WARNING for the Lexington area until 1:45 pm. Please seek shelter immediately." Great. This totally freaked me out and I was automatically struck with fear at the idea of being all alone, in my car, during a tornado.

Well, God provided as only He can. Right when I pulled up to Gerri's house, the sky completely cleared up, the rain never came, and instead, the sun decided to poke out. Seriously...totally blue skies and a big, bright sun began to shine directly over where we were! It was so wonderful and just one more example of God's constant protection and faithfulness. My friend, Tony, met me there and we were able to have a really great visit. We sat outside and had a little picnic on the sidewalk, chatted, and played a game of freeze tag. It was so good to catch up with Gerri and I loved playing with the girls...they have gotten so big and I've only been away a little more than a month ha!

I absolutely love getting to serve at Woodhill and the chance to connect with so many people, especially with Gerri's family. It's wonderful to be Jesus' hands and feet in a real, tangible way and I can't wait to see all that God has in store for this community and ministry in the days to come!


"And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus." -Philippians 4:19

Aftermath

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." -John 16:33

Last night, I got to go to a Hillsong United concert in Indianapolis with Emi, Lauren, Josh & Heidi, and some other friends from church. The concert was absolutely amazing and such an incredible night of worship. It was wonderful to gather together with thousands of fellow believers and shout at the very top of our lungs in worship to our Creator. I prayed that God would fill that arena and that our worship would be pleasing to His ears...and I know those prayers were answered. He certainly made his presence known and at different times, I couldn't help but be hit with chills or a wave of heat as His spirit moved in that place. I loved throwing my hands into the air as far as they could stretch and got tears in my eyes as I looked out at the crowd and saw everyone around me with their arms reaching up towards Heaven. So cool.

We sang several of my favorite songs ("Hosanna," "Like An Avalanche," and "Search My Heart" to name a few) but the highlight of my night was singing "With Everything" proclaiming that with everything I have, I will praise my Heavenly Father and give all that I have to Him!

Here are some of the song's lyrics...

Let hope rise, and darkness tremble in your Holy light.

That every eye would see Jesus our God.

Great and mighty to be praised. God of all days, You're glorious in all of Your ways.

The majesty the wonder and grace, in the light of Your name.

With everything, with everything we will shout for Your glory.

With everything, with everything we will shout for Your praise.

On a completely separate note, today is my parent's 25th Wedding Anniversary! I am so blessed to have such a wonderful example of a loving, Christ-centered marriage. Congrats Momma and Daddy...here's to 25 more years!

Father's Day.

Just wanted to take a few minutes and express how blessed I am to have such a wonderful father and grandfather. Today, we got to spend time together as a family and enjoyed a delicious lunch in La Grange. My Daddy and Pappy are by far the two most important men in my life and I love them both more than words can express. I'm reminded today of how blessed I am in the ways my Earthly father and grandfather exhibit my Heavenly Father's love towards me. They are truly men of God and love, lead, and provide for our family in ways that I know are pleasing to the Lord.


Thinking back to a year ago, I realize how exceedingly fortunate I am to even have my Dad alive today. After his heart attack, I've learned just how fragile life on this Earth is and thank God for sparing his life and healing him in the weeks and months following his heart attack. His provision and perfect timing are true testaments to His faithfulness, as well as, serve as a promise that He still plans on using Daddy's life for His glory on this Earth--He wasn't quite ready to take Daddy to live with Him forever just yet. Furthermore, I think of Pappy and the fact that he is 88 years old but looks and acts like he is in his 70's (his mind is still so sharp and I just love sitting and talking with him, patting his big belly and feeling him rub his coarse hands over mine).


These two men could easily not be around to be a part of my life, yet God knows that I need them and has blessed me with their lives and their example as they constantly point to our Father and set an example for me to follow. I love you the very most, Daddy and Pappy!


Also:

As I wrote this, I was listening to "Father" by Hillsong United. It is crazy good and so fitting for this special day. Whether your dad is a part of your life or not, we all have a Heavenly Father who loves us more than we can ever imagine. We are his sons. We are his daughters. We. are. His!

Cedar Point!

1) Volleyball and Kickball:

We went to a park in Bowling Green and played the most ridiculous game of sand volleyball ever. All of us were absolutely terrible and I almost peed my pants multiple times because I was laughing so hard. Our ball always seemed to gravitate onto the "court" of the league game that was being played next to us which made things even more funny. Those people sure did show us some grace haha.

2) Water Rides:

The first water ride we rode was hilarious. Derek and Griff sat in the front and Keith and I were seated right behind them. After we had taken our seats, Derek said that the people in the front would be the driest and was bragging that Keith and I were going to get soaked, while he and Griff would be dry. Boy, is karma a sweet thing! Shortly after he said that, we went down a big hill and I ducked, trying to stay dry. After we got to the bottom of the hill, I looked up and saw this huge white wall of water heading straight into the FRONT of our log flume. Derek and Griff were completely drenched and the rest of our flume was nice and dry! It was amazing.

The second water ride was even more intense than the first. We knew we were going to get wet but had no idea we were going to get as wet as we did. All the guys took of their shirts and everyone stripped down as much as they could (no shoes, just shorts, camis/sports bras for the girls). There were about 15 of us "brave souls" who were up for the challenge of this water ride and we all piled into the giant log flume. We went down a HUGE hill and our ENTIRE group got completely soaked...it looked like we had gone for a swim in our clothes. Everything was so wet and it was absolutely hilarious.

3) Wicked Twister:

Riding the Wicked Twister was amazing because Derek and I chose to ride in the very front. It was such a rush and a feeling like nothing else. I loved having my legs dangle and threw my arms high in the air the entire time...so much so that I'm pretty sure I accidentally whacked Derek as we were racing straight up to space (well...that's what it felt like at least haha).

4) Skyhawk (Freak Out/Pass Out):

Skyhawk was my favorite ride at the entire park. It's not a roller coaster but is like a giant swing that can hold 20 people on it. We rode it twice and the second time was absolutely hilarious. As we were standing in line, we noticed the reactions of riders ahead of us...some completely freaked out while others appeared to be asleep...all were extremely funny to witness. When it was our turn to ride, we decided we would follow suit with the others we had watched. We arranged it so that every other rider freaked out while the person next to them appeared to be unconscious. It was so much fun (I pretended to freak out and threw my arms in the air the whole time, yelling and acting as terrified as possible). It was great and I have to admit, we put on quite the show.

5) Friends:

The group we were with is ultimately what made the trip so much fun and an experience I'll remember for a long time. I had so much fun hanging out with everyone and shared some great conversations, as well as, some extremely hilarious moments! I am continually reminded of how blessed I am and am thanking the Lord for placing such wonderful, Godly people in my life, people to simply walk alongside and enjoy "doing life" with. So blessed. So thankful. So. much. fun.

Summer. Life. Love.

First off, I must apologize for officially being the worst blogger known to man. I don't think a post every 3 or so months really puts me in good standing in the "blogger world" but oh well...life happens!

Summer. It's finally here! I've already been off of school for a little over a month and can hardly believe how fast the days are flying by! Seriously...who pushed the fast forward button?!

So much has happened since I've last blogged, but the most recent excitement around here has been Emi's graduation from High School! It literally feels like I graduated just yesterday, and now, here I am about to begin my Junior year of college. Say what?! We were all so proud of Emi and the wonderful, Godly girl she has grown up to be. Her graduation was absolutely wonderful and the party was a blast...it's always so much fun to be surrounded by your very favorite people and celebrate the countless blessings our Father has lavished upon us!

Emi's graduation has definitely been the most exciting thing that's happened since I've been home but that's not to say these past few weeks have been boring...in fact, they've been very far from it and we've already done a ton of fun, summery things! I sure do LOVE this time of year...a time to simply enjoy a break from the normal busyness and rush of life. A time to slow down and soak up the warm sunshine, curl up with a good book, and bask in God's goodness and blessings. It is such a beautiful thing to not have to constantly make to-do lists, to not wear a touch of make-up (and not care a thing how I look), and to wake up each day without a set schedule! And...the mass amounts of sleep I've been getting have been nothing shy of delightful. How did I manage 6 or so hours of sleep each night during the school year compared to the 10-12 I've recently been getting?! Crazy.

In keeping with the carefreeness and absolute perfection of summer has been the considerable amount of time I've been able to devote to reading! For months, I accumulated a lengthy list of books I wanted to read, however, with the demands of school I just couldn't get around to reading them. Well, boy have I ever been able to make a dent on my list. Since I've been home, I've read seven books (and am halfway through my eighth). I admit, this sounds extremely nerdy, but I honestly don't care a bit! It's been WONDERFUL!

So far, I've read: Captivating, Mere Christianity, Lady in Waiting, Out Live Your Life, When God Writes Your Love Story, The Shack, Not a Fan, and the most recent addition to my reading frenzy list, Passion & Purity.

God has taught me so much since I've been home from school, thus reminding me that even though I'm no longer in Lexington, I will always be a student as God is my teacher and master and I am merely His pupil, His servant. Primarily, God has been working in my heart and teaching me to fully surrender the desires of my heart to Him and Him alone. I find it so easy to want to be in control, to be the one in the driver's seat when it comes to my life. Lucky for me, God is a WAY better driver than I am...He holds the keys, not me. Although it's challenging for me to give up control and fully surrender EVERYTHING to Him, I know it is exactly what He has called me to do. I have to scoot over from the driver's seat and simply be His passenger, allowing Him to take me wherever He wants me and trusting that He holds the map and the directions needed to get me there.

He continues to teach me patience. Patience, patience, patience. Such a hard lesson to learn but one I know is so very important. While I often don't understand what's going on, I know that God has a perfect plan and that His timing is perfect. Always. I am so comforted by Psalm 18:30 which reads, "As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust in Him."

In Eric & Leslie Ludy's book, When God Writes Your Love Story, they share that "only leaning on God alone and allowing Him to guide and direct every part of our existence will set the stage for a beautiful romance." God is always faithful and I trust in Him alone, knowing that He is more than enough for me. By surrendering all to Him, He will provide everything to live the life He has called me to and although I desire an earthly companion, God will always be the only one who can truly hold the key to my whole heart.

Additionally, I've been thinking a lot about my future husband. Whether I have met him yet or not, I pray for him daily, make that, multiple times a day. I pray for both of our hearts and ask that they would be guarded, protected, and kept pure. I also pray that he would be a man after God's own heart and that he would love the Lord more than anything else in the entire world. I want a man who, like the book says, "doesn't seek to compromise a woman's purity" but rather, "stands up to heroically protect it." I pray for this man I hope to one day serve alongside, to partner with, and grow together in the ways of the Lord. I long for a relationship in which we can bring our King more glory and further His kingdom more together than we can individually. And, I pray for a marriage that will allow me to serve my spouse with a vision for his future glory.

I pray for him and I trust in Him!

There is so much more to say, but time is running out and we have grad parties to run to. Still, I can't help but pause and be thankful for all that God is teaching me and revealing to me during this time of singleness and summer blessings! I know I still have so much to learn and am excited for all He has in store as I strive to die to myself daily and live for Him and Him alone. I sure am thankful for His unending love; a love that never fails, it never gives up, it never runs out on me!

"My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken." -Psalm 62:1-2