The Reminder I Need Right Now

"All of my life, in every season....You are still God, I have a reason to sing, I have a reason to worship."

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Not another Dating Sermon: What Single Women in the Church Really Need to Hear

"Single women often see themselves as sitting on the shelf while life passes them by, or as sitting on the bench while others play the game. They do not realize that they are wasting the most important time of their lives, they are robbing themselves of great joy and reward, they are robbing their husbands of a more virtuous woman, and they are robbing God of a servant through whom He desires to do great things." -Paul Washer

1 CORINTHIANS 7:34-35!!

True Success

Loved this quote I discovered under "A Challenge to Women" at DesiringGod.org:

"Chapters are divided by various things—age, strength, singleness, marriage, employment choices, children at home, children in college, grandchildren, retirement, etc. No chapter has all the joys. Finite life is a series of tradeoffs. Finding God's will, and living for the glory of Christ to the full in every chapter is what makes it a success, not whether it reads like somebody else's chapter or whether it has in it what chapter five will have." --John Piper

Almost a Year Ago...I Left My Heart in South Africa

For my birthday this year, I asked for a silver necklace that has a charm with a depiction of the African continent and a heart on South Africa. I just got it today and it is appropriate that the charm falls right above my heart.

I left my heart in South Africa.

As my journal entry from the night before I left South Africa reveals:

"It's our last night in South Africa, and I cannot help but look back on all of the memories with a twinge of sadness. It has been an INCREDIBLE two and a half weeks...

I will miss participating in some of the awesome service opportunities we got to do- like Hillcrest Hospital, El olam (Hope Valley Farm School), and Orphan Aid.

I will miss the glorious, relatively untouched beauty of South Africa- from the Durban beachfront, to Drakensberg, and the Makaranga gardens.

I will miss driving on the left side of the road, laughing at South Africans' funny pronunciations of things (like zebra), drinking Rooibos tea, and eating my weight in South African cookies (excuse me, biscuits).

I will miss doing my devotions with sloping South African hills and bright South African sunshine as my backdrop. I will miss hearing the sound of African voices, raised in worship, reverberating across the landscape.

But most of all, I will miss the believers of Hillcrest Baptist Church...these brothers and sisters have become so dear to me and it's been such a blessing to see the Lord working in His church and His people, thousands of miles away from my own home and church! "Elect from every nation, yet one o'er all the earth; her charter of salvation, one Lord, one faith, one birth; one holy name she blesses, partakes one holy food, and to one hope she presses, with every grace endued."

I remember during the fall of 2009 and the spring of 2010 I had "somewhat" of a desire to go on a missions trip. The Lord knows the mixed motives behind this desire. Ironically, I was going through one of the lowest points in my spiritual life and was not living a completely sold-out walk for Christ. But I applied for an STM (my three preferences being Brazil, Malawi, and South Africa) and when my parents' good friends the Zekvelds chose to lead the team to South Africa, it was decided. South Africa it was.

The Lord really shook up my world as a result of my trip to South Africa. My two and a half weeks there awoke in me such a burning clarity and passion as to what I am supposed to be doing with my life, whether in the states or abroad: living for Him (a rather basic conclusion, but it is one thing to know that and another thing to live it)!

"...Through God's mercy we have this ministry," 2 Corinthians 4:1. It makes me smile to think that when I was wayward, apathetic, dull, and lukewarm in my faith, when my team was so low on funds it didn't seem like we would be able to go after all, the Lord put me on that team and the Lord provided for us to be in South Africa. The trip was all of Him. The ministry was all through Him. And our subsequent growth was all by Him.

I hope someday the Lord directs my path back to South Africa. I would absolutely LOVE to go back to Durban and see all my friends at Hillcrest Baptist and minister alongside of them once again.

We will see what the future holds and what the Lord ordains. I am praying for the GCC 2011 South Africa STM as they prepare to embark in about 3 weeks. They have no idea what a rich, wonderful, stretching, unforgettable, and blessed time they are in store for. I am not gonna lie, I am a tad bit jealous ;)

If you ever get a chance to go on a missions trip to South Africa. Don't pass it up. The country is absolutely stunning and the African people are so endearing- but most amazing is the dedication of believers and their love for the Lord in South Africa. Such a testimony. Such a challenge to my own walk with the Lord...to this day.

There are so many spiritual needs in that country, and I pray the Lord supplies those needs with the vessels He chooses. And if one of those vessels might someday be me, soli deo gloria. "Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, 'Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?' And I said, 'Here am I. Send me!' " Isaiah 6:8

If and until that time, my team is planning a reunion with lots of Rooibos and Milo and reminiscing on the menu. I can't wait to relive what I will always consider to be one of the best and most growing experiences of my life.

As a plaque in my room says: "May the African sun always shine on you. May the rhythm of its drums beat deeply in your heart. May the vision of its glory fill you with joy, and may the memory of South Africa be with you always."

Here is the 2010 World Cup Song that always takes me back to that wonderful country and my unforgettable time there last summer...

It's the Little Things that Matter :)

“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things" -Robert Brault

So while I would have LOVED to have nannyed or worked at Gap more this week- alas, this was not to be.

So instead I found myself filling up my time with a bunch of random activities: coffee dates with friends, working out with my sisters, blogging, watching crime drama shows, reading about Princess Diana, enjoying some phone and Skype sessions, and my personal favorite- lying out in the backyard to catch some rays, sipping my Starbucks green tea lemonade, and listening to Owl City. :)

Even though it would have been nice to have made more money this week and to have been more productive with my time- I know the Lord created relaxation for a reason. The simple, fun things I have gotten to enjoy, that I don't normally get to do when I am running 70mph in every direction, has reminded me that it's the little things that matter.

So be a productive and God-honoring steward with your time this summer, but don't forget to stop and smell the roses. :)

And with that said I will share with you a favorite quote and a song that reminds me to cherish the "little things,"

["What do we have today? Whatever it may be- a good friend, a hug, a freshly baked bagel, sunshine, a place to call home-can bring us joy because it is God's gift for our enjoyment. Taking joy in the little things is contentment”]
–Contentment: A Godly Woman’s Adornment, Lydia Brownback

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Thoughts on Transition

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THE SHOW GOES ON. I put this song on repeat on May 13 when I was surrounded by bags and piles- packing up to move home after the conclusion of the school year. This moment was bittersweet, as it had been such a fun, eventful, unforgettable year...and as I won't be back in the dorms until Spring 2012, as I will be in IBEX in the fall.

But compared to the end of spring 2010, I was so happy and thankful and excited to be going home. I get now what I didn't get then- THE SHOW GOES ON.

While I absolutely love ministering to a wing and living alongside of my girlfriends and am very much in my element when I am in the social scene- my family is so wonderful, rest is needed, there are so many things I am excited about this summer- AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, while life ebbs and it flows, my constant is JESUS CHRIST.

It can be a bit of a culture shock going from a lifestyle of being on your own, staying up late, and living alongside of your peers to being back under the roof of your parents and getting used to doing chores again, checking in with them, and respecting their direct authority. Life isn't just a carefree party anymore. Your friends don't live a few feet from you, or above you, or down the street from you-ready to hang out at your every beck and call. Reality sets in.

I have seen a lot of peers (and have gone through it myself) be literally depressed upon arriving home. Now I know a lot of my friends have completely different family and church and friend situations, and I know that I have been so BEYOND blessed in these departments. My "school church" is my home church and it is AMAZING- I absolutely love my church of twelve years, Grace Community Church. I have some of the most incredible church and hometown friends a girl could ask for and am always excited to have more time to hang out and catch up with them. I also get more time with my discipler, Mel, in the summer- as she is the wife of an RD. And if you read my third, fourth, and fifth posts on this blog- you know that my family members are my best friends. So all in all, it's a win-win situation.

But these things aren't the source of my contentment. Even when life circumstances are great, I can be discontent, if I am not placing my hope, joy, and focus on Christ.

When my heart is right, however, I don't live to be on SLS. I don't live for school functions. I don't live for wing events. I don't live to get A's in my classes. I don't even live for my friends. Or for fun. Or for ministry events. I live so that "in all things He might have the preeminence," Colossians 1:18.

The Lord has grown and changed me a lot this year, as it relates to being content in "every season." What is the secret to contentment? Resting in Christ, no matter where you are, no matter who you are with, whether your week is busy or boring. I am not waiting for school to start back up or to leave for Israel. I am striving to live for my Savior and am waiting for His return. THE SHOW GOES ON.

"Truly my soul finds rest in God;
my salvation comes from him.
Truly he is my rock and my salvation;
he is my fortress, I will never be shaken."
Psalm 62:1-2

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