it's been a long week!

it has! new students moved in this week and gg classes started this week as well. i feel like the only time i was at home was to sleep...and sometimes not even that b/c we were gone for 2 nights for the new student retreat...which was pretty cool! i really enjoyed getting to know some of the new students, but i have to admit that by the time we got back yesterday afternoon i was all talked out!

today i went through some of the boxes i have had stored in my parents' garage for the last three years. the plan was to go thru all of them, but after about 3 hours i gave up...i also had to go thru the ones i brought from romania, so that pretty much doubled the number. i unpacked a few books and decorative things i want to use in the office. it was good to be able to do that. lots of memories are stored in those boxes...some i really just didnt have the energy to face however...so they remain stored for another day.

i started reading for my theology class today and WOW! i didnt realize how much reading i have to get done before tuesday's class...let's just say i will be spending a lot of time alone reading tomorrow and monday...thankfully i have monday off...and i would really love to do something fun...but i may have to read the whole day :(
i am enjoying it though!


well. im off to bed.
noapte buna!

neat people!

i cant imagine working with a neater group of people! it's true that i've only been working with them for about 2 weeks and some just for 1 week, but i like what i see so far. people with a passion for the Lord and His world who are great in a team and super creative! and they have huge hearts and are very patient with me! what more can a girl ask for? i feel so blessed to be surrounded by such people! i am really looking forward to what He has for us this year as individuals, but also as a team! all 10 of us!

tomorrow morning im headed off to san francisco, well, mill valley to be more exact, for orientation at Golden Gate. i am looking forward to getting away for a little bit, but am not looking forward to the 7-8 hour drive that i'll be doing by myself...this wasnt the initial plan, but it's just how it ended up...i dont really have a choice this time. in the coming months i will have to go up 4 more times for the intensive courses and am hoping to fly up or convince a certain gal who is trying to decide whether or not to do the program to go with me :)

well, i'm off to another wonderful day in socal.

la revedere
:)

older and wiser...

i love old peopLe!

yesterday morning i drove beck and joni to church early cuz they had orchestra. after i dropped them off i went to the bookstore and bought a great latte and sat outside and attempted to do some reading...if you dont know ibc, the bookstore is near the side back entrance... i didnt get much reading done b/c i got distracted by all the people that walked by...more specifically the senior adults. they were so precious! the looks on their faces when they saw one another are almost undescribable. they experienced such joy when they saw their friends! i know life is hard for many of them...some could hardly walk, but that didnt matter. when they saw their friends they completely changed...their faces lit up and they wanted to know about each other's week. oh, and i loved hearing "mornin darlin". a few stopped and talked to me even though i was a little ways away and that was sweet. many were curious as to why i was sitting there by myself,...wondering if i was waiting for "someone special"...but i didnt mind b/c they were so sweet. i also noticed how the much younger people(teens) were acting as they were walking by and they were quite different. they seemed so much more caught up in themselves . they were young and healthy, but lacked something...they lacked the joy that the older people had.
i cant wait until i retire...that's actually been one of my greatest goals :) well, not really, cuz i have a LONG time until i can retire and at the rate im going, i may never get to retire....but really, i do look forward to that time in my life....i love watching the old people in my church and i love talking to them. they are so wise and so sweet and so willing and waiting to serve! they are so active and it's so neat to see the passion they have for the Lord.

during collegiate week we were able to hear about work going on with college students around the country and even some churches that consist only of college students. after one of the sessions a few of us girls were discussing it and they asked me what i thought and i really didnt have an answer for them at the time, but i think i do now. i really cant imagine having a church without older people. there arent enough new styles of worship or whatever young people are looking for these days that can replace the experience and wisdom senior adults bring and can share if someone is willing to listen.

now, of course i believe there is a time for every age group to be with people their own age, but we also need to be with those who are older...those who can share their wisdom and encourage us and walk with us.

i had a very long day today! a good day, but a long day! our whole team was together for the first time today and we had some good times as we kicked off the new year...the day ended with us all hanging out with ALL the student leaders and a fabulous game of bunco(i think that's how you spell it). i am really excited to see what the Lord is going to do this year!

well, im off to bed.

la revedere!

here we go!

when i first moved to romania i used to blog all the time , but as life got busier i no longer had the time...and even though i really wanted to keep it up so that my family and friends could read about what was going on with me, the posts became less and less frequent. after returning to the States and having a much needed break, i have decided to start blogging again. i can't promise i will do it regularly, but i will try.

as i was trying to come up with a new name for this new blog i had many things going through my head, but this one stuck with me. one of the most important things i have realized during the last few years is that there is only one thing certain in life and that is that God is in control no matter what and i can accept that or fight it, but He still is in control. my plans come and go and change as quickly as they are made, but He has a greater plan and if i accept it amazing things will happen! accepting His plan doesn't mean life will be easy, but it does mean that He will walk with me no matter what and having Him walk with me and even carry me if necessary will make the journey a sweet one.

since returning i have had many new experiences. i moved back into my parents' house, i bought my first new car, i started paying bills american style again, relearned my way around the city and the surrounding cities(so many new things!), and so much more :)
i been accepted to grad school and will be starting a dual master's program through union university and golden gate baptist theological seminary...intercultural studies and educational leadership. i also have a job as a grad assistant in the global mobilization office at california baptist university. i have started working and have had a blast getting to know the people i will be working with...what a blessing they are! i am so excited about all the things i will be able to learn from these talented, passionate people. i am still amazed that i get to talk to university students and encourage them to go experience and serve in different cultures and get paid for it! i know it's going to be hard work, but i love it!

i have learned many things during the last few years and during the last few weeks i have been trying to process some of those things and it has been a somewhat painful process mainly b/c i am not sure where to go from here.

as part of this process(even though i didnt realize it was part of the process at the time) i had the opportunity to attend a conference for collegiate workers in glorieta and that really helped me move towards the place i need to be...a place where i can take the good memories and look on them with joy and thanksgiving, and let go of the not so good memories and think on them as opportunities for growth.

truth be told, glorieta was a very painful week for me. for the first time since returning i was away from the busyness and the noise and had to face everything straight on and it hit me like a ton of bricks. i did not leave one session w/o crying and sometimes just weeping uncontrollably. the speakers were amazing, speaking the truth in a way i have not heard in a long, long time... truths that i have known, but needed to be reminded of! the Lord really broke me and started a work that He has been trying to start for a while, but i have been too stubborn and stuck in my own ways to allow Him to work.

during the week we looked at the different ways we respond to the world we live in. i sat through many of the sessions with much regret about what i could have done while i was in romania...and it is true that i could have done more than i did...but then i was given a gentle reminder that i did exactly what He had for me and i need to be thankful for the experiences i was able to have b/c He allowed me to join Him in the work He was doing there. He did not need me then and does not need me now, but what an honor it is to be called to join Him in the work He is doing there and in the work He is doing here.

there are many more things i want to share about glorietta and will share during the next few posts, but this is it for now.

la revedere!
aura