God's Blessed Mission

My pastor spoke about the Great Commission on Sunday. He challenged us to make God's mission our mission with trust and obedience. This tied into a recent lecture from class where the speaker stated, "Get involved with what God is doing because it's already blessed."

Our mission and values should be in line with the big picture God has. He will bless when we are in line with His plan. The exciting part is that this will look different for each of us. We all have unique gifts and abilities that can be used for Him.

My recent classes have encouraged me to develop a personal mission statement for my life. I adopted a line from a song by John Waller that have have blogged about before: Blessing for Life. I have chosen to live by the line, "I will choose to be a blessing for life." I want to find ways to encourage and bless others, and I believe this lines up with God's mission of reaching people for Him.

How are you living to make God's mission your mission?

Embracing Change

Today is Tuesday - and I'm doing laundry. Now, I have mentioned in my blog before how my laundry day is Wednesday. Not Tuesday.

I have been living by a different schedule lately - not intentionally, but life has provided some opportunities to face change lately, and I've been enjoying it. Yes! I have been enjoying changes! Not a common theme in my life in recent years. Let me share a few examples of changes that have happened: (Sorry for the large gaps - my editing page is acting funny.)

-Canceled Plans - Plans with friends have been canceled lately, but I have been able to spend unplanned time with other friends because of it. I've had many random friend times lately!

-Haircut - I got my hair cut recently - at a salon! Not by my mom, who most always cuts my hair. It was a fun treat and something different for me!

-New Work Schedule - I have been doing work for my new position at Life Choices Center. My new work schedule allows for more flexibility with my time.

-Internship Tasks - I have moved away from grant writing a bit to gain experience with press releases, communication pieces, and event planning. I've also taken some field trips!

-Different Days - Last week, I was out of town on Monday, so missed those classes. Then later that week my Thursday internship was switched to Friday, so I put work hours in on Thursday. I was mixed up a bit, but was okay with the changes overall.

Lots of little changes, that I hope prepare me for the bigger changes that will come with graduation. I have been responding well to these schedule differences and finding that change can be a positive part of life.

SIFE Sign Editing

I had some fun last week after we won a large sign at SIFE Competition. My friend, Danielle, and I came up with the idea to turn the picture of people at the bottom in our 5 SIFE presenters. I had a good time printing off faces of Lindsey, Mike, Zach, Mark, and Honna and piecing them onto the sign. I also personalized the top to our SIFE team with our theme for the year, school's name, and currently held title. I revealed my secret project tonight at our meeting, and it got great responses! It is now on display in the business department lounge for students to see. I hope it will be used with SIFE for years to come as a way to bring some SIFE excitement to campus!

What I Will Not Miss

Lately, I've been thinking about what I will miss from me time in college once I graduate in May. However, tonight I was reminded of a few things I will not miss about Roberts and the college years!

-8am Classes.
-Night Classes.
-Buying Textbooks.
-Reading Textbooks.
-Walking all the way to Pearce in the snow and cold!
-Not knowing who to sit with in Chapel.
-Not knowing who to sit with in Garlock - the dining hall.
-Fire Alarms in the Middle of the Night.
-Dorm Kitchens
-People steeling my food, clothes, and movies.
-Homework!

Only 44 days until graduation!

Whose Approval?

In recent years, my life has become slightly less complicated. I simply learned the difference between being a people-pleaser and doing what I really want to do. It was a tough lesson to learn, but once I understood the freedom that came when I embraced the different mindset, I grew more as an individual and learned more about myself.

Much of this started when I began my journey at Roberts. I was very unsure of myself and what I really enjoyed doing. I mostly did the activities that others were doing, whether I truly enjoyed them or not. The end of sophomore year came around, and I had to decide between a handful of leadership positions, classes, and campus activities. I had the people-pleaser mindset, but knew I had to say no to some of the options on my list. How was I going to make those decisions? Easy - ask everyone around me what to do! ...BAD IDEA! I got so confused about what I really wanted for myself after too many people's opinions were floating in my head. What a mess that was! Junior year, I kind of took time for myself and discovered what I really enjoyed doing. It was great! I went to concerts that I enjoyed, I read books for fun, I took interesting classes, and took a backseat when it came to leadership on campus. I enjoyed discovering what I liked to do! Senior year came around, and I had the confidence I needed to make decisions based on what I wanted instead of trying to please everyone around me - what a difference that makes!

All of this brings me to think about a verse in Galatians 1:10, "For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ."

I needed to learn that man's approval is not the most important thing. I am ultimately a servant of Christ and need to be living a life pleasing to Him. I think He would want me living a life that I enjoy, not stressing about the opinions of others. I challenge you to think about who you are striving to please!

Regional Champions

Our SIFE (Students in Free Enterprise details in a past post) team on campus recently got back from a trip to Cleveland, OH. We competed in Regional Competition with other SIFE teams from Ohio, New York, and Pennsylvania. Five of our SIFE students prepared and memorized a 24 minute presentation on the projects we have worked on this year. Our media team put together a video with footage and statistics from our projects. There were judges in each league who decided who would move on to National Competition in Minneapolis in May.

I have traveled to Regional Competition each year since I was a freshman. It's always a fun and memorable trip to be able to spend time with SIFE friends, cheer on our presenters, and celebrate what we have accomplished through our time with SIFE.

The picture above is a handful of us with the signs we won at the awards ceremony. We were so excited about our signs that we forgot to have our Regional Champion Trophy in the picture too! So here's me and Danielle with the trophy below - heading to Nationals in May!

49 Days

I listened to Pomp and Circumstance today and was reminded that May 7th is only 49 days away! That's not a lot of time, and I'm realizing that I will soon have my last class in Hastings, my last game night in Adams 3, my last discussion with my roommate about my snoozing habits, my last SIFE competition, my last random coffee date because class was canceled, and more!

My time here at Roberts has had its ups and downs, but this past year has been GREAT, and I've been sentimental this past month thinking about it all coming to an end. Overall, I've enjoyed college life, grown to appreciate Rochester, and have learned and grown in so many ways! I'm hoping to make the most of these final weeks at Roberts and bottle up more great memories!

This Is My Story

Go to YouTube and play this video while you read this post: www.youtube.com/watch?v=KyBuWj2Pk3I (copy and paste into a new window)

This is similar to what I heard in church a couple weeks ago - a flute playing This Is My Story during communion. The beauty of the flute made me want to get mine out and play again, and I just got lost in the words of the song (actually entitled Blessed Assurance):


Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine!
O what a foretaste of glory devine!
Heir of salvation, purchase of God,
Born of His Spirit, washed in His blood.

This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long;
This is my story, this is my song,
Praising my Savior all the day long.

Perfect submission, perfect delight!
Visions of rapture now burst on my sight;
Angels descending bring from above
Echos of mercy, whispers of love.

Perfect submission - all is at rest,
I in my Savior am happy and blest;
Watching and waiting, looking above,
Filled with His goodness, lost in His love.


I love to share my stories - on my blog, with my friends, through pictures, in all sorts of ways! How special that my Savior is part of my story - and He knows the ending. That last line talks about being lost in God's love as we wait for heaven. I want my praises to Him to be part of my story every day, in thankfulness for His salvation and the hope that is to come. We are part of a great story!

Celebrating 50

SURPRISE!!! My parents both turn 50 this month, so my sisters and I planned a surprise party for their family and friends. We had the idea for a while and really started planning in December - over text messages - on the way back from Christmas with relatives - with my parents in the car!! With Amy in Philly, Julie in Pittsburgh, and myself in Rochester, we used e-mail, texting, phone calls, and other technology to plan the invitations, food, decorations, and the surprise!

Julie was home for the week on her Spring Break, and I was home for the weekend for a work event. While I was spending time with a friend on Saturday (baking for the party!), Julie took my parents to the mall to show them what she wanted for her birthday. That's when Amy pulled into town. I joined soon after with desserts, all the fixings for punch, and more! Guests started arriving, and we were anxious for the big surprise!

Julie texted with the 7 minute warning, and we all gathered in the kitchen. My dad walked in first and just looked so confused! My mom joined him and got teary eyed as she began recognizing faces that had driven from out of town to celebrate with her. We spent the afternoon eating food, catching up with family and friends, and sharing memories of my parents.

It was great to celebrate with my parents and set aside a day special for them. My mom is still saying, "I can't believe..." This will be a birthday to remember for years to come!

Opportunity to Serve

I was asked to share a testimony for one of the missionary worship nights in Ecuador. I shared a verse that was on my mind the week before the trip and continued to be an encouargement throughout my time there.

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith." -Galatians 6:9-10

The week leading up to the trip I was busy with classes, campus jobs, my internship, projects, presentations, and a quiz! I had to fill perscriptions for my trip among other preparations. I was exhausted and stressed, and we hadn't even arrived in Ecuador! When we got to Ecuador, we worked hard! The building site had me doing physical activities I had never done before. The picture above is a job I had one day - I had to chisel 50 blocks to look like that one. I had to make the holes go all the way through the block and carve out one side to make room for re-bar. Trowel in hand - that was hard work! My hands were raw for days! My feet were sore at night from the constant activity. However, my heart was full of love for those we were ministering too!

I had an opportunity to travel to Ecuador, and I didn't let my weary body stop me from serving. I made a point to take care of myself physically, emotionally, and spiritually on the trip so I was ready for all we had planned. Serving can be tiring, but the Lord will bless your efforts!

Ecuador: Elsa's House

This is our team with Rob (far left), Wilson (in blue on left), Elsa (front and center), and David (in blue on right). During the week, we worked on building a house for Elsa. She was born in the jungle, and her father was one of the men that retrieved the missionaries' bodies after the spearing. Elsa became a teacher in the jungle with Compassion International, then began working in the office at MAF. She had started giving people money a few times in the past after they said they would build her a house, only to have them run off with her money, leaving her with no house. We raised funds to build a house on land that she had.

Wilson is an Ecuadorian pastor and has been the foreman for this project. He worked with us everyday, and the last day, his brother, David, joined us. It was neat to learn from Wilson and to work on this project despite the language barrier.

When we arrived, the floor and roof were already complete. Wilson and others had been working on the house up to this point. We worked on the walls while we were there!

This is the layout for the house. Elsa is currently taking cooking lessons and enjoys baking. We gave her a KitchenAid mixer as a house-warming gift - she wants to sell baked goods for extra income. She also desires to offer her house as a place for guests to stay.

We mixed the cement for the walls. To start, we needed to sift the sand to get rid of larger stones. Above, Carol and I are rocking this screen back and forth to get fine sand. That was then added to the cement mixer with water, cement, and lime. This process got tiring after a while!

We all helped to lay the blocks in cement. One day, the walls were about waist high, and we had a good system with Wilson. A few of us would lay cement, he would lay the blocks, and we would fill in with cement and continue the process for more layers.

On day we had to chisel 50 blocks so they would fit nicely over the re-bar. We chiseled with our trowels and a hammer and kept working for most of the morning. My hands were raw for several days after this!

This was how we left the house at the end of the week - 4 outside walls and some inside walls complete. Wilson and others will continue to work on the house, preparing it for Elsa.

Ecuador: Ministering to Missionaries

While in Ecuador, we were able to minister to the missionaries serving with MAF. My church in Rochester supports the DiCrastos, but we spent time with other missionary families as well.

This is Robby and Becca DiCrasto. They were fun to spend time with throughout the week. The young adult group from my church had gone to Ecuador almost 2 years ago, and these two remembered many of them by name! It was neat that we had some common friends. Robby and Becca go to the Nate Saint School - a school for the missionary kids at MAF. After school, they helped us with the VBS and sports camps.

One night, our group split up and went to different missionary homes for dinner. This was my host couple - Ron and Margie Grant. We had a great meal, and they shared a lot about the culture of Ecuador. I learned about holidays and traditions and the long war Ecuador had with Peru. Those yellow roses are a very common sight in Ecuador - any color actually! If I remember corrected, Ron said you could buy 20 roses for $1.50! Interesting, because I had just learned how Ecuador was known for roses in my International Business class.

We were able to lead two worship nights for the missionaries. The first night I shared a testimony - I will have to do a blog post with those thoughts! The second night I spent time with the missionary kids, doing crafts, singing songs, teaching a Bible story, and playing with glow sticks. The little boy above was so cute! He walks in and says to me, "What's your name?" I tell him and ask his name so I can make a name tag. He responds, "Josiah! Do you want me to spell it?" Then I noticed that he had a polar bear, and I asked if we should make a name tag for him. Josiah said, "His name is Polie, but I don't know how to spell that!"

It was neat to be able to minister to the missionaries, and one mentioned that it was refreshing to have a worship service and sermon in English!

This is Lynette DiCrasto - she ministered to us throughout the week with her encouraging words and home-cooked meals! I gave her my grandpa's last wooden cross as a way to say Thank You and leave her with a reminder of our group and our week in Ecuador.

Reading While Experiencing

My friend, Jordan, let me borrow a book recently, and I was able to finish it on my Ecuador trip, which was perfect given the topic of the book! It's called Shadow of the Almighty by Elisabeth Elliot - Jim Elliot's wife. The book talked about Jim's experiences getting involved with Mission Aviation Fellowship and his desire to reach the Auca (now called Waodani) in the jungles of Ecuador. I read about his trip to Guayaquil, then to Quito, and eventually Shell - which is the route our team took as well! The book contained many of the letters Jim wrote to his family and Elisabeth during his time in college and transitioning to Ecuador. It also had journal entries from him. It was neat to read about what we were experiencing!

Above is a picture of me with a Waodani women. We were able to take a little plane into the jungle - just like Jim Elliot would have. Because of his work back in the 50's, and Elisabeth's continued committment after her husband's death, the village we visited contains mostly believers! During my time in Ecuador, it was so neat to gain a better understanding and appreciation for Jim Elliot's and the other missionaries' work.

Ecuador: VBS & Sports Camps

There's me in the middle of a bunch of kids! We got to spend three days ministering to these kids - we sang songs, made crafts, and shared Bible stories. This was my favorite activity of the trip, and I wish we could have spent more time there! I have a few pictures to explain our time with them.

Before our program started, we had small activities for the kids. The first day I had a big piece of paper for the kids to draw on like a mural. This is Gilmar counting all the hearts that he drew! Another day, I organized relay races for the kids - they loved to run back and forth! In fact, they enjoyed it so much, they didn't stop after each person on their team went down and back to declare a winner - they were happy to just get back in line and run again and again!

We did two Bible stories with the kids each day. We had pictures, videos, and skits to make them interesting. Here is Carol explaining the days of creation.

The kids loved to sing with us! We did several songs in Spanish and many had hand motions. The last day we asked them, "Would you like to sing another song?" They answered loudly with, "SIIIII!" [Yes in Spanish]

This is Jared with his baby Jesus and cross crafts. He was in my group each day for craft time and would always be humming or singing the songs we had sung that day - I was thrilled to know that the tunes and words were sticking!

After VBS, the older kids played soccer (the boys) or basketball (the girls). We provided 4 different colors of t-shirts for each of the different teams. The front had [in Spanish], "God so loved the world" with a number 3, and the back said, "that He gave His only Son." with a 16. It stood for John 3:16, which we explained to the kids. The sports camps were a neat way for Rob, the missionary, to connect with the kids - hopefully a relationship that will continue! We also brought a lot of sneakers and shoes with us, and the kids wore them proudly!

While the older kids played sports, I would hang out with the younger kids blowing bubbles, giving piggy-back rides, playing cat's cradle, doing hopscotch, or anything else we found to do! This picture shows the second day when a bunch of kids stayed inside and wanted to color. I colored with them for almost 2 hours! They got so excited to show me their pictures and always made sure they were using the right color. Some of them gave me their artwork, and I brought it home.

I definitely enjoyed my time with the kids - I had been looking forward to my time with them for weeks! I pray they were able to sense the love of God through us and were encouraged by our love for them. Pray that Rob will continue to find ways to connect with and minister to the kids from this school.