Pictures

.....since I can't' seem to update with words...this little dog you see here, looks all cute and innocent, but she is a ball of fire.

Well, clearly, I have not updated in a long time. over a month I can see... Well, the good news is that I haven't fallen off the earth of anything, but school started...and I've been busy! Anyways, I promise an update on here real soon for what is going on in my life! School is overwhelming at the moment, but I'm making it through by the grace of God!

I love you all and prepare yourselves for a rather large entry in the week to come!

p.s. I was on the jumbotron at Saturday's game, and I'm pretty stoked about that might I add.

school!

Today, is my last official day of class, well until August 27th.. but this excites me so much!

Ever since I stepped foot back into College Station, after arriving home from Africa, all I have done is schoolwork, I'm not kidding...

Someone was crazy enough to enroll for 12 stinking hours (cough. me. cough) And was so overwhelmed...

Well, somehow, I forgot to pay for one of my classes, which was an english class, that I should have taken sophomore year, but I hadn't yet... and so I got dropped from the class... which was a complete blessing!

My A&M classes are over after today, and my business class will be over this Sunday!

I will finally get to sit down and make copys of all the DVD's I made and send out my testimony to my supporters... I didn't forget!! I love and appreciate you all so much!

I will finally get to breath.

But most importantly, I will finally get to spend some wonderful time with God! I'm going home this weekend, back to good ole Frankston, where my favorite thing to do, is ride out into the pasture on the 4-wheeler and just sit out there,

to think,

to read,

to pray,

to just be still and listen.

Right as the sun is setting, looking across the water, it doesn't get more peaceful to me.

Sweet Chocolate

....because I love chocolate, and I LOVE my friends!


I got to see this sweet friend of mine on Wednesday. She has been in China all summer ministering on a college campus there.

It's amazing how God can take us both all around the globe and then bring us back together so we can share how He is working in our lives and all that He taught us! I love how we can be apart from each other for one month, two months, and come back and we pick up just where we left off. She is such a blessing!

For 2 hours we shared our stories, just sitting there telling each other our tales from around the world and constantly learning from each others experiences, encouraging one another.

I just love how God created fellowship and how wonderful it is.



This incredible woman you see here... I've really only known since about January of this year, but I feel like I've known her for a lot longer than that. She is such a blessing, and I love getting to have her and her family in my life.

Getting to watch Kendra be a mother to Taylor and a wife to Allen is such a blessing. I learn so much just watching her, them. I love every chance I get to hang out with them. They have been gone on vacation, and I'm so glad their back so I can see them!

She shows me how to live the life that I desire to live by the way she lives her life! Love you Kendra!!!

God is SO good! All the time!



making cookies during exams!! much better than studying!! ha, she'll love I posted this one!



We went to the ICE 2006 at the Gaylord Texan.

Rachel! My sweet roommatee. She's been gone all summer, not that I have been here a lot, but on the days I am here... I DO NOT like being here alone.

I hate staying by myself, especially at night... I have some huge fears that I'm dealing with here people, and I don't think my 2 chihuahuas are going to do ANYTHING if something happens!



I mean, does that really look terrifying?

Anyways... I can't wait for Rachel to be back, I can't believe we're Seniors and this is are last year to live together! I have missed her so much, but I know that this time of being apart will make us be even closer!

God works things to the good of those who love Him!

distractions

So apparently I'm terrible at blogging, it looks like its an every two weeks thing for me. Not because there is nothing going on in my life, but simply I don' tknow why. I sit at a computer for 5 hours a day M-F at work, normally not busy, but for some reason not wanting to share... I"m not so sure.

Anyways. I've been back almost a month, and I promise you it gets harder as the days go by to be here. Let me tell you why...

Distractions. Interference. Disturbance. Hindrance.... is mostly what I've been finding since being home.

In Africa...my prayer was that the Lord would reveal Himself to me completely. I prayed for Him to give me HIS heart for this kids, to let me feel their pain, to give me their burdens, to let me weep for them when they couldn't.... And He did. He gave me just that.

Walk with me through this analogy.

I have been home a month...but I'm realizing my eyes are adjusting to the brightness (busyness) of what is America...and my relationship with God is starting to fade into the background. I mean, I have so much to do! Right, but wrong. If I would only adjust my focus to Him, all my stress and worry would disappear.

So He gave me this picture:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

When we focus our eyes on the Son, Jesus, then the things of this world, it's temptations, fears, worry, and hurts pale in signfigance.

I have prayed against this, but it has happened. I prayed that I would not fall back into the ways of this world, that I would keep my eyes just on Him.

I desire to live my life to have purity of heart, being single-minded, focused on what will please the One who created me.

Testimony

So I know it's been long awaited, and here it is. My fear is that some of you will read it and think that it's not true. However.. it couldn't be more true to reality than it is.
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Camp LIFE – Zambia 2007

April 2007 would be the month that would lead to the 2 ½ weeks that would change my life. The Lord called me to Africa, and I was ready to go! I asked my parents, and to my surprise, they said I could go! When I first signed up to go to Zambia with Camp LIFE, I don’t think I knew what I was in for. I hadn’t heard anyone’s testimony, all I knew was what was on the website and then the information I received in the mail. I had no idea that Camp LIFE would change my life for ever. June 21 would be a new adventure for not only me, but my whole family. Never before had anyone traveled overseas alone, and no one had ever been to Africa. I was filled with excitement about what the Lord was going to do and could not wait to arrive in Zambia.

After traveling for 36 hours and spending two nights in the air, we finally arrived in Zambia. (It was completely worth the long flight.) Saturday and Sunday were spent getting settled in and meeting our Zambian partners. Monday was our first day of camp.

We had 650 orphans during week 4, 52 small groups with about 13 in each group. I cannot begin to explain to you, on paper, how 13 girls can change your life. Words cannot express the effect that going to Zambia had on me. Things that used to be really important aren’t so important anymore. Some of the things that I used to worry about don’t seem so important by comparison. They praise Him heavily with so little, and it’s so hard for us to praise Him with so much. From the moment I saw my girl’s faces, I knew that the week was going to be incredible. I have never felt less equipped to do something than I did at this point. From hearing the heartaches of these girls, most of who have seen much more than many of us will ever see in our lives, to crying for them because they can’t cry…Zambia changed my life. I’m going to attempt to share with you my experiences from Zambia, some of the stories will be so true they will sound like they are made up, but the reality is – they aren’t.

A normal day of camp looked like this:

The Americans arrived at camp around 8:15am, we prayed with our Zambian partners and sang a song or two. The kids started arriving around 9, and after the first day, I didn’t have to look for my kids…they knew who I was and couldn’t wait to find me. In the mornings we reviewed the previous day’s lesson, prayed, sang a song, danced a dance, and had a few one-on-ones. When lunchtime came, the girls were given 4 slices of bread, an apple and a juice box. It sounds like so little to us, but it actually is a lot to them and to some would be their only meal of the day. After lunch, we had the ‘Large Group Session” where we would sing, dance, pray, and learn. Greer gave the lesson during this time as well. We would then go back out to the field and discuss more in-depth what Greer went over. They would ask us questions and we would ask them questions. Before I knew it, it was 3:45 and time to line up to get on the busses. The days went by too fast.



Highlights of my week:
Leading 4 of my girls to Christ; seeing the girls smile; seeing how they depend on one another; watching them dance and praise our God. Seeing the smiles on their faces when we told them they got to color…they were so excited!! Coloring is huge to them. On Thursday, we gave each child a new pair of socks, shoes, a t-shirt and a bandana. They were so thrilled. A new pair of shoes to them is like a new car. A couple of my girls had no shoes until Thursday. The joy in their faces was unreal. To us, shoes are nothing. We’re so ungrateful. It was such a humbling experience to get to put brand new shoes the children’s feet. It reminded me of how much we take for granted in America…so much that we don’t even think twice about a new pair of shoes, and most of us have at least 10 pair in our closet. Also on Thursday, the Americans loaded the busses with the kids, to go back to their compounds. The idea was that for four days, we (the Americans) had been evangelizing to them and now it was their turn to get to go out into their communities and spread the Gospel. I’ll admit that at first, the idea of going out into their communities frightened me. Especially after we had been told where we were going, and I was going to one of the worst…where we were told to not take anything with us. How wrong I was. After a 15 minute bus ride, I saw where these girls, MY girls, lived. It was unbelievable. As we walked into the communities, my girls surrounded me, all fighting to hold my hand. They were so proud to be walking with me, to have their hand in mine. I definitely didn’t blend into the crowd and so I received a lot of stares, but nothing more. Kids in the compound just started following us around and listening to what my girls were saying. I got to listen to girls 10-13 tell people about Jesus, it was so amazing. They prayed for people and just loved on people. It was incredible.

Heartaches
Hearing what my girls experience daily. Many of my girls had terrible nightmares. One of them had a dream where her mother, who had previously died, would appear in her dreams, trying to force her to drink blood. This is witchcraft. Although these are dreams, they might as well be reality to these kids. Another girl had nightmares that the devil was trying to kill her and at night she would hear footsteps in her room and see a light flickering; this same girls father’s side of the family lives in the Copperbelt…and they cook human flesh. Can you imagine the lives of these children? It’s the devil’s playground. To know that these girls experience these nightmares kills me. Why these girls, why my girls? To hear that they are abused when they go home, even if they haven’t done anything wrong. To know that one of them was raped at 4 years of age because there is a myth that if a man with AIDS has sex with a virgin, it will cure him, and so she was the victim. Many of these girls are single, double and maybe even triple orphans. This causes them to live with people who don’t about them, let alone children are seen as a problem in Africa. Could you imagine being told that you are the child of a dog, that you are worthless? I couldn’t and they can’t, but that is what they’re told growing up.

The good news is, they still have dreams and passions. The good news is that there is a God who paid a mighty price for them, and this week, they were told that. They were told that in Christ Jesus they are Loved, Accepted, Secure, Significant and Victorious. The truth is that the lies they are told and have been told are false and they know that now.

It’s truly amazing how 13 girls that I have never known before have wedged their way into my heart. Telling them goodbye on Friday was perhaps one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. When you know what they’re going home to, you’re just not okay with it. Hearing them tell me they love me, that they’ll pray for me, that they hope to see me next year…just brings me to my knees in tears. For maybe the first time in their life they experienced love and priority in someone’s life. When you know what a child is going home to, you’re really just not okay with it. All I can do is pray for them and look through all the pictures I have and watch the few videos. They will forever be in my heart. I find myself looking at my watch, counting forward seven hours to see what time it is in Zambia, or perhaps what’s going on at Camp LIFE at that time.

America sees Africa as a Third World Country, a country that is being killed because of AIDS, but it’s so much more than that. The Satanism and witchcraft that exists there is unreal. Being back in Texas has been hard, especially when your heart is somewhere else. There truly is life before Zambia and life after Zambia and there is a huge difference between them. Thank you so much for all your contributions to my trip whether it was a financial donation or prayer. I could not have gone without either one of those things.

As you can see, my heart is in Zambia, and if I could find a flight back sooner than next summer I’d be there in a heartbeat. The reality of the fact is that I probably won’t and I have to go to school. However, I know that the Lord is calling me back for next summer and I have committed to go; this time for two weeks of camp…one week just isn’t enough. I’ll be going from June 19 – July 13. I know that He is calling me to go I am confident that He will provide the way.

So I don't know if any of you have ever heard of this band... I hadn't. A girl I was in Africa with had it on her iPod...and she had this one song I just loved, called "Tears of the Saints" which really just fit so perfect with Africa! (I included the lyrics below).... however, ALL of their songs are SO great. So true. You should lyric search Leeland and just read the lyrics to the songs, they're AMAZING!!!

Tears of the Saints

There are many prodigal sons
On our city streets they run
Searching for shelter
There are homes broken down
People’s hopes have fallen to the ground
From failures

This is an emergency!

There are tears from the saints
For the lost and unsaved
We’re crying for them come back home
We’re crying for them come back home
And all your children will stretch out their hands
And pick up the crippled man
Father, we will lead them home
Father, we will lead them home

There are schools full of hatred
Even churches have forsaken
Love and mercy
May we see this generation
In it’s state of desperation
For Your glory

This is an emergency!

Sinner, reach out your hands!
Children in Christ you stand!
Sinner, reach out your hands!
Children in Christ you stand!

And all Your children will stretch out their hands
And pick up the crippled man
Father, we will lead them home
Father, we will lead them home