Thursday, August 25, 2011

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Home

I'm home.
My time in England was amazing and life changing. I graduate in less than a week now, and who knows what is in store for me now. I am hoping to focus more on photography now, but I don't know what direction that will go.
Thank you for reading and following my journey over seas.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Ireland

 Just got back from Ireland last night. I had a great time, and did a lot in a very short amount of time. Easter Sunday I was in Dublin for the day, going on a tour bus around Dublin, it was also their independence day so we got to see the ceremony. Monday I went to see the cliffs of Moher, they were really beautiful. Tuesday I was back in Dublin again before flying back to England. I am so glad I got to do that trip. I have been wanting to go for years.
I come home next week which is a crazy thought. I have started looking for jobs, but no luck yet. I graduate in a few weeks which is exciting. I am not sure what I am doing after graduation. I really want to do some stuff with photography, but I'm not sure what yet.
Ireland Independence Day Ceremony 
The Cliffs of Moher

Friday, April 15, 2011

A nice cup of coffee

Today is April 15th, I leave for home in 3 weeks.
We had an unchained last weekend. It went really well. We did an Easter Mural with some students portraying the Easter story. We also did an easter egg hunt with a twist, egg hunt bingo. The kids loved it.
This was or last regular week. The next 2 weeks is Easter break. We have no The Point and no caffe nero for the next 2 weeks. What will I do with myself?? Emily is going to London on Sunday and I am meeting her there on Monday for the day in London. Then we will be in Ireland over Easter for 3 days.
 I am almost done with my last book required for my internship!! 60 pages left :-) Going to go read after I finish this.
I found some jobs online I am going to apply for, for when I get back to the states. That will be a huge blessing if I can get one.
The Royal wedding is coming up soon. No I will not be going to London for the Wedding but I might watch some on the TV. There is  commemorative stuff out every where.
I had my last house group last night. :-(  I will missing going on Wednesday nights. I do need to find a group when I get back, so if anyone is interested let me know!

Thursday, April 7, 2011

It is beautiful out!

I cannot believe it is April 7th today. I leave for home 4 weeks from tomorrow.
The weeks are going by so fast. Right now we are planning another Unchained which is this Sunday. I am working with a few students on murals that depict the Easter Story which will be displayed at Unchained. There might also be a mural set up at Unchained for the students to draw on during the event. I am also putting together funny videos to be played while the band is playing.
The other intern and I have been doing a small group called The Starting Point with some girls that are involved with The Point. We have been teaching on the Book of Esther. We are almost done, just one week left. At the end after they know the story pretty well, know the history, we are going to watch the movie One Night With The King. The movie is not completely accurate but that is why we chose to work through the book in the bible first before showing it to them. We had about 4-5 students coming every week.
The Point is still going strong, we have about 25 students still coming every week. All the students are very different which is awesome. The students at The Point help with the planning and set up of Unchained.
I am working on a book right now called The Shaping of Things to Come. It is a lot like Liquid Church, however, I like this book better. It talks about having a missional church rather than an attractional church.
I got to go to Oxford last weekend, which was tons of fun. The other intern and I took the coach down to Oxford for the day. There were tons of people there since it was a Saturday, but we did get to see some good things. Like The Eagle and Child, a pub. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien used to meet up there and talk about their books, for over a 20+ year period. We ate in the same room they met in :-) We also got to go by Christ Church College. Pieces of the Harry Potter movies were filmed there, like the grand hall (where they ate) and the inner court where they learned to fly on brooms.

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Living on the Devil's Doorstep

Living on the Devil’s Doorstep
By Floyd McClung 
Living on the Devil’s Doorstep was an absolutely amazing book. After finishing the book I wished I, as the reader, would have received more of the story. The issues dealt with in this book get even more challenging as the book goes on. This goes along with the McClung story, to which Floyd admits that if what happens first, second, third, etc., in their story they as a family would never have been able survive the places God called them too. 
This book is the story of the McClung family story. Floyd and his wife start their ministry in Kabul, Afghanistan, then move to the Red Light District of Amsterdam. God really challenged this couple, from people they met, where they lived, and having children while living in the Red Light District. 
The first thing that really touched me in this book was looking at just how much God will provide for the furthering of His Kingdom. The McClung family really learned to trust God financially through their time in Kabul and in Amsterdam. At one point they wanted to pay for a building that cost about 475,000 guilders. The McClung family/ministry had no money, they didn’t even know where the next meal was going to come from. But God wanted that building. Floyd some how met the owner of the local bank who was supportive of the local Christian community work and gave Floyd 400,000 guilders. How does that happen? God provides, you need to put your faith and fear in Him and not in earthly things. 
Money has been one thing I have been struggling with recently. Being that I am on my internship and running out of money very quickly. I am learning to budget and make decisions on what I really need. Also, not buying thing because of saving money for other expenses. I must say this is a very good lesson I am learning considering I am graduating in May and will have to really start paying bill and such. This book has really taught me to put all of those worries into prayer to God. 
Another thing that has really been placed on my heart is saying to God, “Where do you want me?” Straight forward, and listening, taking the answer and acting on it. To tell you the truth is scares the crap out of me to just say God okay no matter what, no matter where you want to send me, or what you want me to do I’ll do it. This is something I have been taught to do my whole life as a Christian. He wants us to just jump in the water and have faith that He will keep us a float, but I think I am still hanging onto the side of the pool kicking. So I’m in the water, but am I really IN the water? This book has just blown my mind. The McClung family agreed to do the things that God had called them to. This family was called to the oddest places, at one point the family lives on a boat with 100 other people. God used them to make the strangest places, a place of God. Another places was a building adjoining a Satanist temple. I can’t even imagine the scary places, and events this family experienced. But God stood by them and they had the chance to meet amazing people, some joined the ministry and started leading along side the McClung family. 
When I finished this book I felt like God wanted me to pass it on, I have not done it yet, but I will be praying about the right person to pass it one to. I got this book almost a year ago from an old SFG leader, I didn’t read it till jut now and I wish I had read it a year ago. 
The last thing I want to share is one of my favorite parts of this book. John, a man in the ministry with Floyd, was in a bar. “John sensed that the man over in the far corner was the person God wanted him to speak to. He hesitated, as the man seemed withdrawn and unwelcoming…[he decided that] he should simply go over, sit down, and tell the man that God loved him and wanted to forgive him. John reasoned to himself that the music was so loud the man probably wouldn’t be able to hear anyway. ‘If this really is what You want me to do, Lord, then You are going to have to do something about all this noise,’ he whispered. A few moments later the music stopped in mid-song. The disco equipment had broken down!…[John went over to the man and said that God loved and forgave him]. The man seemed genuinely astonished by John’s comments. ‘Do you know who I am?’ the man said. When John said he did not, the man went on to explain that he was the high priest of the Satanist temple…” 

Saturday, March 26, 2011

UK Census

I will officially be in the UK Census this year! Woot! haha