Home Sweet Home: Summer 2016

Summer 2016 has been an interesting (and strange) summer for me.  The funny, and slightly ironic, thing is I’ve barely left my small Mennonite home town that I’ve grown up in.  This summer marked the first summer in 3 years that I have worked full time hours.  That simple reason, played a large part into me ‘staying put’.  However, even with working, I have been able to maximize my evenings, weekends and the long weekends to their fullest potential.  In turn, I have not felt as though I have somehow ‘missed out’ on summer. For that, I am thankful.
 

Unknown to me at the start of it, summer 2016 also proved to be a summer in which I would continue to wrestle intensely within my own heart.  While I still stand by what I have said in earlier posts about being at peace with where God has me now, I’ve been realizing lately that I have this ongoing need to ‘process’ key events over the last few years of my life to help me continue to grow personally and spiritually.  Thank you to those who continue to walk alongside me in this rollercoaster journey.  As part of this journey, I am trying to figure out different ways in which will allow me to share/process/heal/learn from the many adventures.  In the past, I have always turned to journaling privately- recording thoughts, feelings and emotions of a certain place, moment, story, or event.  Capturing moments on a photograph, has also helped in this as well.  Thank you to a wonderful APP called “Timehop”, each day I am treated to photos, posts, status updates and much much more on a daily basis.  

So what does any of this have to do with anything?  

There is a saying that goes, “Home is where the Heart is”.  While I don’t disagree with this statement, I find that it brings about a whole new set of challenges and heartaches-especially when one’s heart is scattered around the globe.  I find myself asking, ‘If home is where the heart is, what happens when your heart isn’t in one exact place-but in multiple places on earth?  What happens when we are in one location, doing what we love to do, but our hearts yearn to be elsewhere with the people who are there”?  If home is where the heart is, then where is my home?”

“Timehop”, along with a recent post by a world race teammate, recently got me thinking to the people, places, cultures, stories, emotions and events in which I have not chosen to share for whatever reasons-specifically in regards TO my World Race experiences.  So, I have decided that, at least once a month, I will post a blog about the country I was in three years ago while ON the World Race.  I am not quite sure how this will fully take forum yet.  Some months it may simply be a photo blog, while others maybe a combination of race blogs I posted at the time along with personal journal entries.  Other months, may simply highlight my teams ministry contacts and share about the on going work that they are continuing to be apart of.  After all; it is through them and their wide range of passions and ‘callings’, that have truly inspired and taught me about life and what it means to live a life of sacrifice.

Holiday from God

So the following is copied off something I sent to a good friend of mine from college...figured it sort of spoke to what I was/am going to write about anyways

Honestly-God and I are ok. Not really a low and not really a 'high' so to speak. Reading my bible daily is/has been harder again (not sure why cause when I DO read it, its awesome and i can feel the fire growing-so why I dont keep reading- I am not sure..devos always have been hard for me to maintain daily). I know God is still alive and moving, but lately-I've been asked some tougher questions by those around me (good questions) but they got me wondering. I have lots to pray for-but I fear my prayer life is drying up (which is scary for me as its something I have/do rely on.) I am finding that I am having to "remind myself" to focus and pray but I am also re learning that prayer and worshiping God comes in lots of different forms as well.



So with my title "Holiday from God"-it is NOT like I have called it "quits" on God..cause I've been close to that in the past and well, lets just say-never again will I be that close...


I once heard a sermon about taking a 'vacation from God'-the pastor's main point was that summer is a change of routine..there is little (if any) routine in most people's lives (cause its summer) BUT what he did say tho was, to take a 'vacation' from God, isnt good.  That too often, we do just that-put "God on hold" for the summer. 


I feel that perhaps-this is whats happening to me.  I dont want it to.  I need to/have to fight harder to draw close to GOd.  To seek HIS face. To pray more. To worship more. To read more. 


So if you can-pray. Pray that I will not fall away further from God, but that I will draw to Him.  Pray for yourself too-that you may feel and experience God in a new way this summer.  I KNOW God is very much alive and moving as even today, I saw/heard evidence of this, this evening.  Right now-its thundering and lightening like crazy out there...that in itself, is a testimony to the power of my God!


Holiday from God? I am crazy.  I am totally and completely lost without Him.  This is one holiday that I do NOT want to be on.

Leave tomorrow!

Well, as the heading suggests, I leave tomorrow morning! Woot! Can't wait! Wow though, I dont recall taking as much stuff last year as I am taking tomorrow! Guess this year I know what to bring and all so that just makes it more. I know I came home last year with way more stuff then I originally took! Whoa, I can't wait though, little nervous now, wierd I know, mayeb its the whole idea of change again and a new routine. Yah thats it-change
yah well its good for us all. Camping this weekend was really good, good food, fun, friends, converstations, the works:D
short post, as I am off to bed!

Hej

4 more sleeps till Holsby reunion! Woot Woot! I am so stoked I can not wait! It will be a party:D:D
So I have been at work for a full week now. Lets just say that it should be an interesting summer. Let me define that. Interesting in the sake that it is already insanely busy which means that it will get even more busy come later in the summer. Lots of overtime, but that also means those hours need to be out in as well and sometimes already, its been hard so yah strength will be much needed. However I am already enjoyin my ride to work in the AM, listening to music and just enjoying the coolnest of the morning (heres hoping it doesnt rain tomorrow like its suppose to!!)
Anyways, each summer, dynmanics at work changes do to the people who are hired on, and this summer might have its challenges with a few, but I did ask God too lead me this summer so then maybe this is why.

One thing that has been hard already is just being satisfied with what I am doing this summer. I look around and know of a lot of people do international missions/camp all summer and this and athat, and yah I am a little jealous. Dont get me wrong I am super pumped about camp for two weeks in July, but yah other then that, I am just working. I am already making plans for next summer...dont think that is a good thing, becuase lots of things can change, and I am forgetting the here and now.

But back to the reunion in a few days. I am so stoked for that! It will be so good to see friends from Europe again and just to personally reconnect in personal versus over the internet. That said, it will also be really hard insense that that is another group of friends that I will have to say good bye to after a few days. I really dont like saying bye!!!

Anyways, that is just a little update from here! Hope things are well and hope you are enjoying your summer!

Breaking down

So yesterday I had typed up a whole write up for here, but apparently it didnt update the blog, so yah here we go again and hopes it works.
Anyways, School is officially, 100% done for this year. My first year at SBC done, wow insane. HOw do I feel? Not sure yet. Right now We have my brothers wedding on saturday so very busy with that so though I have had some time to process everything, still working on it from making that shift to saying bye this past monday, to wedding stuff to starting work this coming monday. all just very busy and it takes me a while to adjust at points.
That said though, I think I am looking forward to starting work on monday. A friend of mine will be working there this summer with me and I am looking forward to getting to know her better and develop our friendship deeper through breaks and just talking and all. That said also, I know come july and August it will be hard and trying with the amount of work there and the hours I know I will have to put in and all...yet someone at school made a good point. They too were just going back for the summer to work and their goal was to hav that become their mission field. I will admit, I am quite bummed about not doing anything international like I had hoped at first, but this started to make me think about how I can be God's light were I work. I think, no I have made it my goal to each day, just brighten one persons day a bit, whether at work, home or out on the streets. I pray that God will use me this summer in those small ways. That said though, I am flying to ontario for may long weekend to hang out with friends tha tI met in sweden. we are having a Holsby reunion which I am SUPER pumped about! Flying there with a friend from sask. and then for 2-3 weeks injuly I am planning on being a counselr at camp. So I guess I am doing sometihng. Something that was stressed over to me lately is that God will use me whereever I am, as long as I am willing. So that is my prayer also.

As a short reflection on this past year, I dont know where to start! One thing that really sticks out is not the classes or the 2AM or 5AM timmy runs, or sev runs, or even something as powerful as Mission X, it is the smiles, hugs, lauighter, community, friends that were there that stick out. THough this summer break is much needed, I miss them dearly already! Again God has blessed me so much this last year with peoples friendships. For those that knew me prior to school/europe will know that I was more laid back and not as social as some, I also had a large personal bubble. NOw I dont know if this is good or bad, but I know my bubble has totally shrank this last year (and I tihnk its good) I am discovering who I am, the fun side is coming out more and things dont embarress me liek the used to...thanks to a few certain people!
SO yah, not sure who all reads this still, but those of you from SBC-I can not say thanks enough for everything this past year! IT has been a riot and I will never forget this year! AND keep in mind, more great times to come next year!
Till next time (which i hope is sooner then this last one!)
take care and God Bless

Summer 2007

well its come and gone...another week, another day, another summer gone. Needless to say it was good. DIdnt do much, worked a lot, went camping over the weekends, the long weekends. In fact just got back from that, it was a good time other then the swollen ankle and all. So heading off to SBC tomorrow...not sure how to feel about that. LIttle nervous, this and that just want it to be over. Trusting God with it that I am. But whoever reads this if you could send a prayer up for me this and that would be great! Very much appreciated. I will be very happy when the first few days are over. So just a short update but i should be off to bed take care and hopefuly next post willl come from SBC somewhere! until next time