Review

So, I meant to write a "review" post some weeks ago, but life can get crazy. As soon as I got back from Urbana and Passion I returned to Lexington for a week of sorority rush, and then I've spent the last three weeks or so getting myself back on track to make up for THAT week. Such is life.

The nine days that I spent in St. Louis and Atlanta were wonderful, though quite tiring and I was slightly sick by the end of it. The result of this was that I had no voice for rush :) such a perfect time to be voice-less. I had to whisper-shout all week just so the freshmen girls could hear me!

I got to St. Louis without a hitch. In fact, God's grace was so sufficient throughout the entire week in keeping me safe and getting me where I needed to be without any trouble, and in having the right people show up at just the right time so that I would have someone to eat with or to go to another location with. This was especially important at Urbana where I was with a lot of people I didn't know (UCSD IV chapter) for most of the time, but still had Steve (IV staff worker) and Aaron (W&L law student) to meet up with through W&L when I felt like it. This mostly happened at meal times.

The first major possible upset was that Mason, Chrystalain, and Jay missed their flight out of Los Angeles and therefore did not arrive in St. Louis until around 5:30. They were scheduled to arrive at 2:30, and so I had made my flight for 2:00 so that I could transfer to the hotel and conference area with people that I knew (or at least one person). Well, that didn't happen, but the friendly Urbana staff got me from the airport, to the MetroLink, and to my hotel safe and sound. :) When I arrived I was greeted by one of my roommates, Kelly, who was about to go to coffee/dinner with her sister Brenna and her friend Emily. Our other roommate, Jennifer, was just arriving, and then Chrystalain, of course, was probably flying over Oklahoma about that time.

So God made it so I would connect with just the right people while I waited for Mace and friends. :) Nice. Kelly, Brenna, and Emily were very nice and I had fun getting to know them and their friends in the late afternoon/early evening. Mace, Chrystalain, and Jay met us at the conference center around 8. :) By the time the first night was over, I was already getting indoctrinated into the UCSD IV chapter. They had near 100 students there...at that point, I had probably met 20-30 of them.

The next five days were a mix of general sessions, awesome worship, teaching from Ephesians with Ajith Fernando, enlightening annoucement commentary from Greg Jao (hilarious guy), small group Bible study in the mornings, prayer groups at night, great seminars, and very cool drama and video productions. Details to follow. What little "free time" I had I spent sleeping or hanging out with aforementioned individuals, though I also got to see Samantha Ward briefly, which was cool. :)

I think my boyfriend Brian summed up the Urbana experience very well when he said that my description reminded him of boot camp, but for God. Every minute was planned out and everything was done for a purpose. I was so tired by the end of those five days that I could hardly believe our sanity when we decided that we were going to go to two conferences back to back. But we did.

The last night of Urbana was New Years Eve. We celebrated with extended worship and communion, and then it ended at 12:30. Mason, Chrystalain, Jay, and I had checked out of the hotel that morning and Mace had gone in the afternoon to rent a car that would take us all the way to Atlanta. We got in around 1 AM and we were off.

Again, God's grace is sufficient. It's a miracle that we got to Atlanta without Mace or Chrystalain falling asleep at the wheel. I slept most of the way there, and so did Jay. We got to Atlanta around 10 AM (1 hour time difference from St. Louis). Sadly, the hotel would not let us check in until 3 PM, and we, of course, had just driven eight hours through the night, we hadn't been able to shower since the previous morning, and we were in pajamas. They showed us to a ballroom where we could rest, let us refresh ourselves in the restrooms, and let us check our bags for the day so we could explore Atlanta a little.

We took the rental car back to the airport and then went to check in with Passion -- we managed to convince them to let us in the same general session group (blue) and the same community group (striped neon green). These were also the colors of the wristbands we had to wear, to complement our gold Urbana ones. After that we grabbed some lunch at the CNN Center Jock and Jills restaurant, and by then it was time to go back to the hotel, check in, and sleep before general session started at 7.

Passion was a lot more laid back than Urbana. Yes, the days were relatively planned out, but there was scheduled "free time" and the breakout sessions weren't as intense, nor were the main sessions. The speakers were all excellent, and the worship, of course, was incredible. The four of us had some good times together, and also with our small group (oh, we managed to end up together there, too :) we have skill).

So that's a basic overview of what happened. I'm planning on going through my notes for each session and writing a review of each to help consolidate what I learned when I was there and to remind myself of it. It's hard to say that I learned a single thing because I heard and experienced so much that to sum it up in one sentence would be a major mistake.

I'll try to do this with all the expedience I can muster. :) But I am taking thirteen credit hours, I am involved in a huge number of school activities, and I do have other responsibilities. However, I will do my best. Until next time, thanks for reading. :)

Ready to go!

My bags are (mostly) packed, my cell phone, camera, and iPod are charging, I've printed out my itinerary and a map, and my plane leaves in almost exactly twelve hours...I'd say I'm pretty set to go. And because of all the prayer support I've received from friends and family and being able and encouraged to commune with God in this time before leaving, I can say that my heart is ready to go as well and ready to learn.

I will be at Urbana from Dec 27-31 and Passion from January 1-4. My schedule will be something like this:

Urbana
Morning: Ephesians Bible study in a small group, a morning Bible teaching
Lunch
Afternoon: 2 seminars, except on Dec 30 there will be community prayer time
Dinner (provided by Urbana)
Evening: General session, community prayer time

I am most interested in the seminars that have to do with evangelism, campus ministry, and balancing faith and the workplace...specifically, journalism and public school teaching. I am also interested in several seminars that have to do with using the gifts of music and writing for God.

Passion
Morning: Worship and a general session
Lunch (provided by Passion)
Afternoon: Breakout sessions (small group, service projects, possible seminars)
Dinner/Break
Evening: General session, late evening worship

Speakers at Passion will include Beth Moore, John Piper, and Louie Giglio. David Crowder, Matt Redman, Charlie Hall, and Chris Tomlin will also be there.

I will be getting to Urbana and home from Passion via plane, and I am driving from St. Louis to Atlanta with several friends in a rented car the night of New Years. Specific prayer requests follow...

• health!!!
• safety, especially in transit
• that my heart and mind would remain open to what God wants to teach through the speakers, Bible studies, worship, seminars, small group time, and prayer time
• speakers, prayer ministry, worship ministry, volunteers
• that I would be able to maintain a feeling of rest and be able to start up with school again after Urbana/Passion and still feel like I got adequate resting time
• for the other friends I know going to these events: Mason, Chrystalain, Lisa, Jenni, Samantha

Thanks again for your support in these past months. I can't wait for tomorrow! I will do my best to update this blog while I am there, but if they don't have computers, I won't be able to. Let's hope that they do! If not, you'll hear from me for sure after January 4.

Beautiful Feet

Some of your feet will be wounded. Others bruised. Some broken. Some feet will be tired, others happy, some running, others stumbling. Some lying, ceased living, trapped, confused, deceived. Some feet dancing, leaping, springing, bounding...His were pierced. And though risen, the feet of Jesus still bear those wounds. His hands and His feet have been run through by whatever yours feel and face today. How beautiful are His feet, and the feet of those who bring the good news of Jesus

~ Passion Blog, December 7, 2006

One thing that I think people forget when they are preparing for something like a missions trip or a conference, or even just when they are getting ready for church or Bible study, is that every time you come into contact with God, you have to respond. Because something of yourself is revealed in that time. When you come into contact with the Creator, the Father, Emmanuel (God with us), the Christ, you see in stark detail the difference between you and He.

We bring our baggage with us everywhere we go, and especially when we go to a place with the purpose of experiencing God. For a long time I felt like I had to have everything right before I went before the throne of God. I couldn't figure out why I couldn't get over things, why I kept dwelling on the past, why I didn't feel joyful.

It's not easy to realize that you will always bear your wounds, but then again, so does Jesus. The holes in his hands, feet, and side were still there after his resurrection. I don't know how that plays into the fact that we get new bodies once we go to heaven, but that's not what I'm speculating about now. :)

The wounds of Jesus remind us that He made Himself as one of us so that He could relate to us. They remind us that He took our sin and cross to make us whole, and He understands everything we are going through. Our wounds should do something similar. Not exactly the same, but think about it.

Because we are wounded, we can give testimony to the glory and grace of God. Keeping things to ourselves not only hurts us, but it prevents our brothers and sisters from knowing the fullness of God and what He has done for us. We're called to testify to His love, glory, and grace. I'm not saying that you need to spill about everything that has happened to you to everyone, but when we are open about our lives, when we show the scars and the joys on our feet, it brings us into fellowship with others and it fosters joy and reconciliation in our lives.

Prayer for today: that everyone getting ready to go to Passion and Urbana prepares their hearts to meet God, because there is no way anyone can go there and not see something about themselves that they don't like, but that's why there's grace

Passion Blog

I've added a link to the Passion/268 Generation Blog. Yesterday, they started a 28 day prayer preparation for Passion 07. If you're looking for something to pray through, I'd encourage you to check it out! See the link on the right column...

Seminars and Support

Sorry about the lack of updates...the past few weeks have been very busy with Ring Figure, Thanksgiving, and then finishing up classes. I still have another week of classes, but I'm mostly done with what I have to do, so praise God for that!

Two very nice things happened last week. Firstly, I went over my support money goal, so I have everything I need to attend Passion and Urbana! It's very cool seeing how God provides when you open yourself up to it. I highly encourage it. :)

Secondly, the seminars were posted on the Urbana website. This probably went un-noticed by a large part of the attending population, but I have been waiting in anticipation for them since about June. Yeah.

The way Urbana works is that there are general sessions twice a day (morning and evening), group Bible study and prayer in the morning and at night, and then in the afternoon there are two seminar periods every day except for the second to last day. So, you can attend a total of 6 seminars. Also during seminar time, there is a prayer room, a worship room, and a missions agency fair, every day.

There are seminars for almost anything you can think of. The ones I am most excited about focus on worship, careers (public school teaching and journalism), campus ministry, and evangelism. Check out the seminars here.

Prayer Requests:

• health...physical, mental, emotional, spiritual
• my exams and final projects
• safe travels for my friends and family
• guidance and discernment as I prepare to attend Urbana and Passion in just 23 days!

Mission and Missions

Today I took some time to go through a preparation email that I got from Urbana last week. It went through the distiction between mission and missions. For the Christian, mission is God's purpose: calling and drawing people to Himself. Missions is what we do in that overall goal; the little things that we do on a regular basis, and the big things that we do every once in a while. It's smiling and helping someone who is lost find their way, and it's serving dinner to the poor in a soup kitchen. It's working at a church camp, and it's going overseas to spread the gospel. All the time, every day, we are involved in missions.

There was also a link to an interview with Rick Warren of Saddleback Church in California. He wrote The Purpose Driven Life and has spoken at numerous churches and conferences. In this interview, Rick outlined five transitions that need to be made for us to be effective in our missions for His mission:

1. Self-centeredness --> God-centeredness
2. Local orientation --> global orientaion
3. Temporal values --> eternal values
4. Security --> service
5. Comfort --> sacrifice

Each of these things touch on different aspects of what it means to be a Christian. We are called to cast off our former identity to embrace one informed by who we are in Christ. This requires us to think like Christ did about the people in the world and how all of them are worthy of love, not just the lovable ones. It requires us to keep in mind that the things of this life will pass away, but He never will. It requires us to serve others with the same heart. All of that requires a sacrifice of our time, energy, love, comfort, resources, abilities, and so much more.

See the interview itself for more expansion upon those thoughts. :)

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is. His good, pleasing, and perfect will." ~ Romans 12:2

Vital Attendee Information #1

Today I got the first in a series of reminder emails from the friendly people at Urbana intended to make sure that I have all of my affairs in order and that I know what I need to know in the weeks leading up to the conference. Of course, since I am slightly obsessive, I already knew much of it from reading through the web site a few times. Well, quite a few times, really. I already know my travel and hotel information, and I've thought about seminars and what kinds of things I want to participate in at the conference.

The email served as a reminder to a planning-oriented person like myself that no matter how much I read through the information they provide and think through what I want to do when I'm there, it's still going to be stretching experience. Especially since we're going to turn around and drive to Atlanta from St. Louis in the middle of the night to attend another conference back to back.

But stretching is good for you, at least I think so. :) It reminds you and gives you the courage to have the faith to take the next step, without being able to see where the path is taking you. I know that God wants me at these conferences, if for no other reason than to remind me that He is sovereign and He is going to take care of me. He already arranged for two scholarships to come to me through InterVarsity (one giving me a discount on my registration rate and the other from the Shenandoah InterVarsity group) and gave me a mental list of prayer supporters, some of whom will be financial supporters, so that I have this opportunity.

Stepping out in the dark isn't easy. Growing and stretching hurts. But the end result? Well, I can't see it right now, but I know that it's going to be beautiful and for Him.

I don't know where I'm going right now. I finished the dorm counselor interview process today and now I just have to wait for a week or three (ha) and pray that God's will would be done. I really want to be a DC and have a freshman hall. You know when you have this little voice in the back of your mind telling you that you're supposed to be doing something? Well, I believe that's the Holy Spirit, and I believe that when the time comes to fruition, He tells you when you're supposed to do it. I've been thinking and praying about being a DC since freshman year, and I feel like it's where He's leading me for next year, but of course I won't know for sure until I find out if I am accepted or not. I like applications - they're clear cut.

I don't know where I'm going after college. I don't know whether it'll be grad school or to a job. I hope to go to grad school in Virginia, but there's no telling yet, really. The theme for Urbana is "You Have a Calling" though, so maybe I'll know. :) But maybe I won't.

One thing I do know is that I have to remain open, even if I have all the specifics nailed down. Something can always change, it's just what makes life interesting and wonderful.

For now, though, I'm thinking that my homework is calling. Essay time...