It Has Begun

It's hard to believe that I have been here on the Farm for a whole week now. We often have been told  that the days are long but the weeks are short and we definitely have felt that so far. The first week here at Training has been full. Full of classes, full of new people, and full of heart. We have bonded in a way that we can't explain, and I am so grateful for each of the new friends I have made so far. I am living in a quad with four other single girls, a couple, and a family with two sweet boys. We go to classes during the day that range from Taxes and Insurance to Church Planting with much more to come. But some of the greatest times that we have had so far has just been in the evenings when we can hang out together and laugh, play games, play music and sing together. Such a rich time of getting to know these people who are on this same journey as me.

I was given the suggestion that I would answer some questions once a week to kind of let you all know what I'm up to and what life looks like here and once I get to Jena. So here's my first whack at it :)

What I'm thinking: Today I have been thinking about something that was said in our meeting this morning. We read  Luke 10:2 which says "And he said to them 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.'" How liberating a thought that there is a Lord of the harvest and it isn't me. I don't have to make it happen, I just have to be faithful to the work. I've been pondering that today...

What I'm reading: Presently I am reading The Book Thief by Markus Zusak. A wonderful friend gave it to me before I left and I am thoroughly enjoying it. It's the story of a foster girl in Nazi Germany who steals books and learns to read with the help of her foster father. Also the story is narrated by Death, so it doesn't get much cooler than that.

What I'm listening to: Oh man so much good music is coming out soon. Sara Bareilles' new album came out last week and I'm really enjoying it. I got two new Ben Rector songs as well, Ordinary Love and Beautiful. Both very much worth a listen. As far as what I'm hearing at this very moment... it's actually quiet. Usually our quad is full of people dropping by or hanging out, but for now it's quiet.

What I'm learning: I am learning so much geography this week. We had a mapping ceremony on Sunday evening and everyone stood up and told where they were going and placed a picture of themselves on a big map in the lobby. I have never been so aware of different places in the world.

What I'm watching: There is a playground right outside of our quad so I can see all the kids and parents on the playground. Right now I can see two little girls pushing a giant teddy bear in a swing :)

What I'm cooking: I have literally not cooked a thing in more than two weeks. All of our meals are cooked for us here so I haven't had to cook anything.

What I'm buying: I don't have a car on campus here so the when ever some one is going to town I just have to hitch a ride. We went to Wal Mart on Sunday afternoon because I had to buy a new umbrella. Mine blew inside out when it rained one day last week. Brilliant.

What I'm thankful for: I am thankful for the amazing quad mates that I got placed with. They have been such a blessing so far.

What I'm planning: As a part of our training we have to set goals for ourselves that we would like to meet before leaving the Farm in September. One of mine is to memorize six Bible verses. So today I have spent some time making some notecards and mapping out which I am going to focus on this week. This week's verse is John 15:5 "I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing." Not quite from memory, but I'm getting there!

What I did over the weekend: This weekend we did our first mile run. Everyone on campus did a timed run and we have to show progress by the time we do our last one in September. So let's just say not everyone was giving 110%... Then we just hung out for the afternoon. Some of the other girls in the Europe quads and I started the Insanity workouts last week so we did our second day on Saturday evening. We had our first small group time on Sunday. None our worship gatherings at training will be western. So no group gatherings for worship in English. We meet in house churches on Sunday mornings and will eventually meet in them during the week as well. Sunday afternoon we went to town and then had our mapping ceremony that evening. A great first weekend in VA!

What I'm looking forward to: This Saturday our affinity is hoping to take a trip into Washington DC to do some touristy things for the day.

A picture to share: Ok I'm not fully prepared for this yet, but hopefully by next week I'll have one to share :)

Two Weeks

 

In two weeks from today, I will be packing up to leave Murfreesboro. As scary as that sounds, I could not be any more excited and ready for this next step toward Jena.
The past weeks have been both a blur and a blessing. I was able to speak and share at Walter Hill First Baptist Church in Murfreesboro, who has so graciously committed to pray for me during my time away. My home church, Third Baptist, has been overwhelmingly supportive, as seen by the many who have committed to pray. I was so honored to share with the children who attended Vacation Bible School during June. This past Sunday I was able to speak at Grandview Baptist Church in Maryville, the church where I was saved and baptized, and East Maryville Baptist Church. Every group has been so encouraging and welcoming to the mission of Connexxion and committing to pray for me and for Jena.

I was so blessed to be prayed for by these youth. The Lord has strengthened my spirit through the support of others. To each of you who is praying, thank you for your support and your love as I go. Thank you for loving the gospel and the nations and being a people that wants to see the good news spread.

In the midst of packing bags and travel details, God has continued to give me a vision for what He wants to do in this time. I go back over and over to the verse in Matthew after Jesus has taken Peter, James and John up to the mountain and they saw him transfigured. The men were so scared and so overwhelmed by the glimpse of the glory of God. The Scripture says in Matthew 17:8 that, "When they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only." Jesus was revealed to those men in a way that they weren't expecting and they weren't ready for. But when they lifted their eyes, they weren't focused on their fear, uncertainty, or bewilderment. They only saw Jesus. God wants to zero our focus in so closely that all else fades and falls away and his Son is all we see. That is my prayer for this season of life, that even when uncertainty comes, fear is real, and my spirit is on overload, let Jesus be all I see. Pray with me that the people of Jena will see him as well.