Lessons from Pittsburgh

The final part of my journey was a two-week stay in Pittsburgh.  While I was there, I worked with Youth With A Mission as a volunteer staff member for a summer camp/mission trip called Joshua Generation.  During this time, God showed up in many different ways and even took the opportunity to teach me a few lessons.  I would love to tell of everything God shared with me, but I will give the highlights instead.

When I first decided to be a volunteer staff member for this trip, I knew it was a choice made out of obedience.  God made it clear that I was supposed to be there, and I wanted to follow His plan for me.  To be completely honest, this was a time of testing.  I had been away from home for two weeks and wanted to be in the comfort of my own small town again.  When things didn't go exactly as I had anticipated, this desire to flee became even stronger.  I had to make the choice if I was going to stay or leave.  While on the phone with my mom, she asked me what I wanted to do.  I responded that my decision should to be made according to what I needed to do, not what I wanted to do.  This was hard, but it taught me a lot about sacrifice.  I had to put aside my own thoughts and feelings and trust that God would provide the energy and enthusiasm to make it through those two weeks.  In hindsight, there isn't one big reason why I believe God had me there but there are plenty of small reasons.  One of which was to teach me about obedience and sacrifice.  In those times of testing, I have to remember that refining is often done by fire.  This process may not be pleasant, but I am thankful for the aftermath.

For this next story, I want to give a little background from my last Joshua Generation experience as a student.  Two years ago, I learned that God can give me words for other people.  I had known for a while that He could speak to me through my thoughts, but I realized then that He wanted to speak words to me that were intended for other people.  Staff members had given me what are called "words" many times before.  These words were always very special for me to hear, and I remember most of them to this day.  So, I was excited when I found out that God wanted to use me in this way.  Returning back to the original timeline,  I learned even more about this gift during my time with YWAM this summer.  Oddly enough, I had never before realized all of the details that I am given when God presents me with a word for someone.  Usually, I don't just receive a word from God.  I get a person's name or face, a word, and a picture that confirms the word.  The way God plans this stuff blows my mind.  He knows that I often doubt my assignment to give someone a word that I have heard from Him.  I think the picture is His way of reinforcing the message that I have been given.  Another reinforcement sometimes comes after the word has been given.  Here is an example from my experience at Joshua Generation:

One morning, I felt God instructing me to give a word to the student that was doing devotions with me.  I was unsure exactly what I was supposed to say, but I went ahead and took the opportunity to talk to her after we finished our devotions.  I had planned out what I was going to tell her, but the words changed as they flowed out of mouth.  They became the words that God needed to speak into her life.  I realized as that happened that my words were useless, but God's were so meaningful.  The word she was supposed to hear was "leader."  God was calling her to lead others and was shaping her into the type of person that would fit this mold even if it did not seem natural.  Her response to me confirmed that God was speaking through me.  Once I said what God had put in my mouth, she told me that she had been struggling with God about Him making her into a leader.  I didn't expect her to say that, but it was good to see God confirm the message.

God works in amazing ways.  Sometimes the process of His work isn't what we would call fun, but I know that He always has a plan.  God wants to use our lives to accomplish extraordinary things in this world.  We just have to be attentive and obedient to His call.  My experiences this summer are proof of that. 

Team Picture! 

If you would like to learn more about Youth With A Mission,

visit www.ywampittsburgh.org

 

Vacationing at the Beach

The day after returning from Colorado, I went to North Carolina and spent time at the beach with family and friends.  I have loved trips to the beach ever since I was a little girl.  Splashing in the waves and napping under the sun will never get old.  Each time that I find myself sitting on the shore, I am captivated by the beauty of what lies in front of me.  This feeling of amazement builds from one viewing to another.  No longer is the ocean just something that I enjoy, but it is something that holds a great mystery.  I don't understand the movement of the water or the rhythm of the waves.  I will never see most of the creatures that call the ocean home.  Yet, I know the one who created it all. 

I can stand at the edge of the water for hours and think about God and nature.  He creates such beautiful things, and I have the privilege of experiencing a portion of it.  Some people will never experience the ocean and some who do prefer to stay far away from it.  I find it hard to put myself in their shoes because I love the sense I get about the beach that there is so much more to be known than meets the eye.  There is a story behind every grain of sand and each shell washed up on the shore.  I will never know these stories, but it fascinates me to think they all exist.  Maybe I'm going a bit too deep here, but these are simply my thoughts.  The sun illuminates a million things at this wonderful place called the beach, and at the same time it lights up a part of my imagination that normally stays dark.

Speaking of the dark, I also love what happens at the beach when the sun goes down.  One of the most interesting things about nature is that it completely changes at night, and the beach is no different.  I've spent many evenings hunting for crabs in the sand with my family.  We don't always find any, but when we do someone is guaranteed to let out a scream as a crab crawls over their bare feet.  These are some of the cherished moments that God has given me.  Days at the beach with my family will always be in my memory as some of the greatest times spent with them.  

From the mountains to the beach, God knows how to touch my heart.  He can always bring a smile to my face, and He did so multiple times as I stared out at the ocean.  All I have left to say is this: God is good.

Colorado Mountaintops

Just over a month ago, I went to the Free Methodist Youth Conference (FMYC) that was held in Fort Collins, Colorado.  It was a great experience to be a leader there and see how the event impacted the students from our youth group.  I had looked forward to seeing how God would speak to the students, but I did not anticipate how much He would also speak to me during this time.  Most of the eye-opening moments from this trip occurred during the evening session when the speaker, Phil Manginelli, took the stage.  Phil spoke with a passion that magnified everything that God was speaking into your life at that very moment.  It quickly became clear to me that God was speaking through him and using him to impact lives during FMYC.  Since God spoke to me in so many ways during my six days in Colorado, I want to share a few of the things that really had an impact on me.

The very first evening, Phil spoke about the passage in Luke 4 where Jesus called Simon, Andrew, James, and John to follow Him.  When Jesus called these fishermen, they dropped their nets, left their boats, and walked away with Him.  They didn't take their nets along with them as a backup plan.  They left everything that was familiar to them because they trusted Jesus.  Their total abandonment of the one thing that sustained them sends a clear message.  They trusted Jesus to be the only provider they needed.  Earning a living was no longer their primary concern because all basic needs would be met if they obeyed the call to follow the Son of God.  I am amazed at these four men because of their absolute surrender.  Most of us have our own nets that we carry around with us every day.  They are the things that hold us back from from experiencing all that God has for us.  Maybe those nets are something we think is good, but we might need to recognize the restraint it places on our relationship with God.  On the other hand, some of our nets are defined by things that bind us, hurt us, wrongly define us, and make us feel weak.  Whatever the case may be, we need to drop our nets.  They may look comforting to us at the moment, but they are preventing us from experiencing all that God has for us.  He wants all of us, and that can't happen unless we are willing to completely surrender every part of our lives to Him.  The things God has in store for us are always better than what we've been keeping from Him.

The second idea I want to share goes along with that same Bible story.  Jesus used the words "follow me" when He called the disciples.  This wasn't an accident, but let me back up for a minute before I dive into more about those two words.  The definition of the a disciple is a learner who follows the master.  An interesting point to make here is that either we are a disciple or we aren't.  Jesus calls us to follow Him and, in doing so, calls us to be a disciple.  Don't read over this too quickly and miss the point.  Jesus actively calls us to a life where we follow after Him every day.  Saying the sinner's prayer is a great thing, but it's just the beginning of the journey.  I used this analogy to explain this to my students.  Imagine that I walk up to you and ask you to get me a glass of water.  Would you say, "Sure!" but continue to stand there and look at me?  I doubt it, but that's what we do to God every time we neglect to follow Him.  To declare Jesus as the Lord of your life is to respond to His call.  Our journey through life should be shaped by the guidelines He set up for us and the plans He has made for our lives.  So, if God is asking you to get Him a glass of water today, make sure you're words and actions agree.  Following Him will almost certainly mean that we have to take a risk, but that is simply a part of having faith.

Speaking of risk, I had the opportunity to climb a bit of the Rocky Mountains while I was in Colorado.  This was one of the scariest, yet most satisfying things, I have done in my entire life.  It wasn't too difficult to get most of the way to the top just by walking, but there came a point where the only option was to climb.  After deciding that this was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity, I began to climb.  Thankfully, I didn't have far to go until I reached the top.  Once there, I sat in a crevice and just looked at my surroundings for a while.  I was eye level with the mountaintops across the valley.  The view was absolutely breathtaking.  Sitting there, thinking of my creator brought me to tears.  The pictures I took don't really do it justice, but I will share some of them at the end anyways. 

The main idea that I took away from FMYC was that I need to run after God with my entire being.  He doesn't want some half-hearted attempt at being a Christian.  He desires to see me pursue Him with all that I have in me, and I believe that is His call to all of us, Christian or not.

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.  And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.  For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.  Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." 
Hebrews 12:1-3

 

My Summer Journey

I recently returned home after being gone for a month, and I think it's important that I take time to reflect on all that God did during that time.  From July 3rd to August 3rd, I found myself on three different trips in separate areas of the United States.  No matter where I was, though, it was apparent that God was with me.  It has never been so obvious to me that God is present in every location and circumstance that we find ourselves in as we go through life. He alone deserves all the glory for my experiences this summer.  If God had not planned it all out, I am sure that my summer would have looked very different.  Two of the three trips came about as a response to God's promptings in my life.  If that was not the case, I never would have planned to be gone for a month, and I also would have missed out on a lot of quality time with my creator.

In an effort to recapture many of the moments that I experienced with God, I will be posting a blog for each trip.  Before I do that, I just want to explain where I went on each trip and why I was there.  I started off my exciting adventure by going to Colorado for the Free Methodist Youth Conference (FMYC) with a group of teenagers from my church.  I am one of two youth leaders for the youth group, but I served as the main chaperone for the trip since the other leader was also working as a nurse for the conference.  My second trip took me to North Carolina where I spent some time at the beach with my family and friends.  It was a last-minute decision for me to join them on vacation, but I'm so glad that I did.  Finally, I went to Pittsburgh and volunteered with Youth With A Mission (YWAM) for a teen summer camp called Joshua Generation (JG).  JG is something that I participated in as a student for three years, and I never imagined that I would end up going back to be a volunteer staff member for this trip.  However, quite a few months ago, I received the same postcard for three weeks in a row that advertised the trip.  I thought a mistake had been made because I am too old to attend JG as a student, so I threw the first two away.  Then, one of the YWAM staff members left a message on my phone telling me about all of the opportunities they had for high school and college students over the summer.  After hearing that call and receiving the third post card, I realized that God was trying to send me a message.  He wanted me to volunteer to spend two weeks of my summer with YWAM.

I will hold off on any more details for now, but the blogs for these trips will be coming soon!
Have a blessed day, and don't miss out on what God is calling you to do.  He might even take you on a trip of your own!