Hola mis amigos! Saludos y bendiciones en el nombre de Cristo Jesus! =) We´ll I made it to Peru safe and sound. I got in late Saturday night and didn´t have any problems with my flight or customs or anything. Wilma and her son Gerson were there to pick me up. I was immediately overwhelmed with questions about my family, people at GO and all sorts of stuff! I tried to understand as best as I could and fumbled around for answers to their questions. We made it back to Wilma´s house and I was taken to the third floor where I have an entire room to myself. I talked to Wilma for another 10 minutes or so then we said our goodnights and I began to unpack a little. I think being in my room that night and actually being in Peru is when it hit me that I´m here for six weeks. It´s a little overwhelming but I guess you get used to it. Oh funny story....so I go in to the bathroom to get ready before bed and what do you know I have three friends to join me. Yes, las cucarachas decided to hang out in the bathroom at the same time! Haha, darn things! Scared me half to death! Needless to say, I did a quick potty, teeth brushing and face washing and I was out of there! Fortunately, they haven´t been back since but I always look for them when I go in there! =)
Sunday went well. Got up and went to church. There was a team from Alaska there so I actually was not completely immersed in Spanish. Lots of English being spoken. Anyway, after church we ate lunch then I went back with Wilma´s three children. Rebekah is 28, Gerson is 25, and Emily is 23. They are awesome. We came back to the house and just hung out and went for ice cream and attempted conversation. Haha. Fortunately Emily speaks really good English so if I´m stuck, she can help me out! =)
Anyway, last night Rebekah wanted to take me to downtown Lima to Las Aguas. It is this huge park with lots of beautiful fountains. You can actually play in some of them. And at 7:30pm, they have this light show with the fountains and music and everything. It was incredible! So fun! Definitely a great first day in Peru!
Today, went pretty well too. I spent a lot of time with Emily. She is getting ready for a camp so I went with her to the market to get some stuff. Then two of her friends needed to get a bunch of food from the market so we went two more times after that. It was fun just hanging out with them and getting to know them a little better. Once we finished at the market, I ate lunch and started helping Wilma with a huge picture booklet for the children she works with. I´ve been working on that all afternoon and now I´m taking a break. I really don´t know what the rest of the week holds (except for the fact that we´re going to the beach on Thursday and I´m super excited about that! Don´t be too jealous). =) Oh did I mention my arms are a little burned from the sun today and I´m wearing shorts? =) Haha!
Anyway, thanks for all your prayers friends. Please continue to pray for me as I learn the language. I am getting a little frustrated. I feel like I know nothing and I really hate fumbling around for words all the time. But it´s just the first two days. I´m hoping it´ll get better by the time I leave! You know, this woman came up to me in church yesterday and said God wanted to do mighty things in my life and that I need to expect Him to do big things. So I´m trusting and expecting that He will do big things in and through me and I pray that I don´t limit Him to anything. So maybe one of these big things I can expect from God is that He´ll give me complete understanding of the Spanish language. You never know...nothing is impossible for Him. Guess we´ll have to wait and see what happens! I´ll try to update this when I can. I hope all of you are well and I pray blessings on each one of you! Dios te bendiga! =)
-Michelle
Monday, January 12, 2009
Friday, January 9, 2009
Next Stop, Peru!
It has been quite a while since I have written on this blog. I guess it's time to start again. I'm going to do my best to use this blog as a way to keep people informed with my trip to Peru. Yes, if you hadn't already heard, tomorrow on January the 10th of 2009 at noon, I will be leaving for Lima, Peru for six weeks! I can't believe it's finally here! What will I be doing, you might ask?! I will be traveling down by myself and staying with one of GO InterNational's partners for the first two weeks. She has a feeding program for street children in Lima so I will be helping her out with her ministry. I will also be working on my Spanish speaking skills. My goal is to become even more fluent in the language, so that is why I am doing this total immersion in the culture! =)
After the first two weeks are over, a short term team from my church will be coming. I will help co-lead this team and we will be going to Puerto Maldonado, which is one of the least reached regions with the Gospel in Peru. We'll be doing VBS, passing out eyeglasses, construction, sewing classes and so on. We're definitely going stay busy! I'm super excited about this part of the trip because at the end of my time with this team, we will be going to Macchu Picchu!! This will be my 4th time to Peru and I still have never been. So I'm excited to experience this for the first time!
Once I finish with the team from my church, I will be heading back to Lima for about a week and a half to be with the same lady I was with when I first arrived to Peru. Then, a second team will come and I will help out with them. We will be heading to Yurimaguas, which is in the Amazon region of Peru. We'll be doing a lot of the same things that I did with the previous team. Then, on February 21, I will fly home to KY!
I'm really excited about this opportunity that God has given me to go. I believe it's going to stretch me in more ways than one. For those of you who know me, you probably can imagine that I haven't even started packing yet. That's what today is for. =) Haha. So on that note, I probably need to go. But here are a few things you can be praying for:
-Safety (I'll be traveling by myself so just pray that I have no problems with security or other people and that I also have a safe flight)
-My language skills (I know enough Spanish to get around but I still have lots to learn-please pray that God would open my mind and my mouth and enable me to really understand and speak the language)
-My relationship with Jesus (I just want full dependence on God during this entire trip-just need renewal in my life and want an even deeper relationship with Him)
That's all for now. Thanks so much for your prayers! I will keep you updated when I can!
Dios te bendiga (God bless you)! =)
-Michelle
After the first two weeks are over, a short term team from my church will be coming. I will help co-lead this team and we will be going to Puerto Maldonado, which is one of the least reached regions with the Gospel in Peru. We'll be doing VBS, passing out eyeglasses, construction, sewing classes and so on. We're definitely going stay busy! I'm super excited about this part of the trip because at the end of my time with this team, we will be going to Macchu Picchu!! This will be my 4th time to Peru and I still have never been. So I'm excited to experience this for the first time!
Once I finish with the team from my church, I will be heading back to Lima for about a week and a half to be with the same lady I was with when I first arrived to Peru. Then, a second team will come and I will help out with them. We will be heading to Yurimaguas, which is in the Amazon region of Peru. We'll be doing a lot of the same things that I did with the previous team. Then, on February 21, I will fly home to KY!
I'm really excited about this opportunity that God has given me to go. I believe it's going to stretch me in more ways than one. For those of you who know me, you probably can imagine that I haven't even started packing yet. That's what today is for. =) Haha. So on that note, I probably need to go. But here are a few things you can be praying for:
-Safety (I'll be traveling by myself so just pray that I have no problems with security or other people and that I also have a safe flight)
-My language skills (I know enough Spanish to get around but I still have lots to learn-please pray that God would open my mind and my mouth and enable me to really understand and speak the language)
-My relationship with Jesus (I just want full dependence on God during this entire trip-just need renewal in my life and want an even deeper relationship with Him)
That's all for now. Thanks so much for your prayers! I will keep you updated when I can!
Dios te bendiga (God bless you)! =)
-Michelle
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
It's Time for an Update I'd Say....=)
It's been ages since I've written and I feel like it's time for an update. The last time I had written, I had just seen the musical Wicked. Wanna know something funny? I just saw Wicked last night! Ha!! Crazy how things happen!!
Anyway, I guess a quick summary of my last month in Ireland. Everything went really well. Lots of challenges came my way but God was faithful. I loved getting to know the kids better and working in the cafe. I got to attend a production put on by the kids from the Jez, which was so fun! I got close to a bunch of girls before I left and they were so cute! They'd come in during the lunch hour and look for me and just were so sweet! I was happy to have them come in! They were a bright spot in my day! Oooh, and I can't forget Felipe!! Felipe was this boy who started coming in who made all of us smile! He hadn't heard about the cafe until about a month or so before I left the country. Well, once he found out about he, he absolutely loved it and was in there everyday. Before I left, I got into a conversation with him about God and he said that he believed in God more since he had been coming to the cafe!! Praise God! What an encouragement! That was so fun and he is one of the kids I miss a lot!
It's so hard investing so much in a place then having to say goodbye. I realized the time I spent there wasn't enough to really invest like I wanted to. But I just have to pray that God will take what little bit I did invest and really speak to the kids and change their hearts! I pray each one of them comes to an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ!!
Before I left, I got the chance to take a week holiday in Italy! My friend Taylor lives in Arezzo, which is in Tuscany, and teaches English. It was so fun getting to stay with him for my visit! My old roommate Kira met up with me too! We traveled to places like Cortona (where they filmed the movie Under the Tuscan Sun), Siena, Modena (where Balsamic Vinegar originated), and Rome! I loved it! A week is definitely not enough time to spend in that place! Too many amazing places to see!! I loved the food and the wine was pretty amazing too! Seriously, having great food and wine were probably some of the best memories I had on that trip!! And Taylor taught me to cook a meal called Polenta!! Yes folks, I am actually cooking now!! Who would have thought!! So yeah, Italy was great and words honestly can't describe how incredible it was!
Well, as you can probably figure it out, I am back in the states (back at Taylor in fact). I came back in mid-December and was home for about two weeks before coming back to good 'ole Indiana. It was good to be home and see family and friends again. It was definitely hard though because I have had a lot to process since being home. Once I got home, I was dealing with some culture shock and really missing my friends, not to mention thoughts of certain people who were in my life came back to me as well. I guess the realization of life back home hit me again. I was kind of able to run from it while in Ireland, but now I had to deal with it.
I left to move in to my apartment on Wednesday the 2nd of January. God is so good, I must say. A friend of mine that I did not treat very well last year called me up on my way to Indiana. It was really cold that night and I was going to be in late. (By the way, this girl and I had made a mends and were friends again but I had no idea she was going to call me). Anyway, she told me that whenever I got there that I should call her because she wanted to help me move in. I was shocked that she even offered this to me. I got there, called her, she arrived, we hugged, and it was as if nothing had happened to us in our friendship. We got all my stuff in then I took her to get some coffee. I started talking and began to apologize again for all the things I had done and she told me not to even bring it up, that it wasn't necessary. She said she had already forgiven me and forgotten it. WOW! What an amazing example of Jesus right there....and unconditional love and forgiveness. God has been so good...He has been restoring that friendship and I am so thankful. I am so thankful God has put people like her in my life. If you want to know what true friendship is, this is it. Thank you God for blessing me with a friend like Erin!!!! =)
Like I said before, God is so good and so faithful. He is a God that brings restoration and healing to peoples lives. He also gives us a second chance (and a third, and fourth, and so on..)! I praise God for that. I know I didn't invest in my friends lives last year. I invested in other places and now am reaping the benefits of that. I basically have to start all over but praise God that I still have that opportunity. It's hard though. I am trying to pick up the pieces of the life that I had here and put it back together, without James in it. Being back here has been incredibley hard but I know it's where God wants me. I need to face my problems and struggles head on. I have a lot to work through and still need lots of healing in my life. But praise God, He is patient and faithul and leading me one step at a time. And being back here has made me realize how much I really don't have myself together. I have realized I have a lot of insecurities in my life. Fears of failure and rejection, my own weight issues, caring what other people think about me, etc. I keep asking myself why I am this way. It's bondage and I want freedom. How do I get out of it though? The only way I know is to embrace this junk head on and turn to Jesus. Honestly, I just got this picture in my head of having all these things in my arms (basically junk) just weighing me down. And then I turn to God and he takes them from me. But how does he take them from me? He takes them by me being intentional and spending time with him. By spending time with Him, I get to know His heart and the person that he created (me) and how He delights in me. To be honest, I have realized that my identity is not in Christ. I want it to be but I know it's not. That's what I'm striving for, is knowing and believing that my identity is found in Christ and no one else. The only way I know to do that is to immerse myself in Christ and in His Word. From there, God will completely cover me with who He is and the person I am will be found in Christ. I'm not at that point yet but am striving to be there. Philippians 1:6 says, "being confident of this that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Praise God! I know God has started this work in me and it will be finished one day. Whether it takes a few months or the rest of my life, God has promised to complete the work He started in me!! I am so thankful that I have that hope. That means I need to continue to persevere and press into Jesus. By pressing into Jesus, that freedom will come!
Something else that has been encouraging to me is the whole idea of the hard times in life. I have realized that we all need them and they are a season in our lives. BUT, if we persevere in them, God will carry us through and help us. We will grow from our circumstances and know that God has allowed whatever has happened to teach and grow me in my relationship with Him. So the encouraging thing is that God allows these things to make me more like Christ! Woohoo!! How exciting!! It's that whole idea of hope again that even though this circumstance really stinks, I know God is faithful and is making me more like Christ through it. And those hard times just make us cling to God even more! So I just praise God because even though life is hard and is not always great, I can still praise Him because I know He is good and faithful! I just can't stop saying it! God is so good and so faithful!! =)
Well, I think that is all for now. I will try to keep this updated a little bit more often. As the weeks go on, the school will probably get a lot harder for me. But I am excited to say that August of this year, I will be graduating from college!!! Yay!! I decided to go ahead and finish a whole year early! I am very excited and looking forward to what's to come after college!! Okay, well God bless and have a great day!!
Love,
Michelle
Anyway, I guess a quick summary of my last month in Ireland. Everything went really well. Lots of challenges came my way but God was faithful. I loved getting to know the kids better and working in the cafe. I got to attend a production put on by the kids from the Jez, which was so fun! I got close to a bunch of girls before I left and they were so cute! They'd come in during the lunch hour and look for me and just were so sweet! I was happy to have them come in! They were a bright spot in my day! Oooh, and I can't forget Felipe!! Felipe was this boy who started coming in who made all of us smile! He hadn't heard about the cafe until about a month or so before I left the country. Well, once he found out about he, he absolutely loved it and was in there everyday. Before I left, I got into a conversation with him about God and he said that he believed in God more since he had been coming to the cafe!! Praise God! What an encouragement! That was so fun and he is one of the kids I miss a lot!
It's so hard investing so much in a place then having to say goodbye. I realized the time I spent there wasn't enough to really invest like I wanted to. But I just have to pray that God will take what little bit I did invest and really speak to the kids and change their hearts! I pray each one of them comes to an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ!!
Before I left, I got the chance to take a week holiday in Italy! My friend Taylor lives in Arezzo, which is in Tuscany, and teaches English. It was so fun getting to stay with him for my visit! My old roommate Kira met up with me too! We traveled to places like Cortona (where they filmed the movie Under the Tuscan Sun), Siena, Modena (where Balsamic Vinegar originated), and Rome! I loved it! A week is definitely not enough time to spend in that place! Too many amazing places to see!! I loved the food and the wine was pretty amazing too! Seriously, having great food and wine were probably some of the best memories I had on that trip!! And Taylor taught me to cook a meal called Polenta!! Yes folks, I am actually cooking now!! Who would have thought!! So yeah, Italy was great and words honestly can't describe how incredible it was!
Well, as you can probably figure it out, I am back in the states (back at Taylor in fact). I came back in mid-December and was home for about two weeks before coming back to good 'ole Indiana. It was good to be home and see family and friends again. It was definitely hard though because I have had a lot to process since being home. Once I got home, I was dealing with some culture shock and really missing my friends, not to mention thoughts of certain people who were in my life came back to me as well. I guess the realization of life back home hit me again. I was kind of able to run from it while in Ireland, but now I had to deal with it.
I left to move in to my apartment on Wednesday the 2nd of January. God is so good, I must say. A friend of mine that I did not treat very well last year called me up on my way to Indiana. It was really cold that night and I was going to be in late. (By the way, this girl and I had made a mends and were friends again but I had no idea she was going to call me). Anyway, she told me that whenever I got there that I should call her because she wanted to help me move in. I was shocked that she even offered this to me. I got there, called her, she arrived, we hugged, and it was as if nothing had happened to us in our friendship. We got all my stuff in then I took her to get some coffee. I started talking and began to apologize again for all the things I had done and she told me not to even bring it up, that it wasn't necessary. She said she had already forgiven me and forgotten it. WOW! What an amazing example of Jesus right there....and unconditional love and forgiveness. God has been so good...He has been restoring that friendship and I am so thankful. I am so thankful God has put people like her in my life. If you want to know what true friendship is, this is it. Thank you God for blessing me with a friend like Erin!!!! =)
Like I said before, God is so good and so faithful. He is a God that brings restoration and healing to peoples lives. He also gives us a second chance (and a third, and fourth, and so on..)! I praise God for that. I know I didn't invest in my friends lives last year. I invested in other places and now am reaping the benefits of that. I basically have to start all over but praise God that I still have that opportunity. It's hard though. I am trying to pick up the pieces of the life that I had here and put it back together, without James in it. Being back here has been incredibley hard but I know it's where God wants me. I need to face my problems and struggles head on. I have a lot to work through and still need lots of healing in my life. But praise God, He is patient and faithul and leading me one step at a time. And being back here has made me realize how much I really don't have myself together. I have realized I have a lot of insecurities in my life. Fears of failure and rejection, my own weight issues, caring what other people think about me, etc. I keep asking myself why I am this way. It's bondage and I want freedom. How do I get out of it though? The only way I know is to embrace this junk head on and turn to Jesus. Honestly, I just got this picture in my head of having all these things in my arms (basically junk) just weighing me down. And then I turn to God and he takes them from me. But how does he take them from me? He takes them by me being intentional and spending time with him. By spending time with Him, I get to know His heart and the person that he created (me) and how He delights in me. To be honest, I have realized that my identity is not in Christ. I want it to be but I know it's not. That's what I'm striving for, is knowing and believing that my identity is found in Christ and no one else. The only way I know to do that is to immerse myself in Christ and in His Word. From there, God will completely cover me with who He is and the person I am will be found in Christ. I'm not at that point yet but am striving to be there. Philippians 1:6 says, "being confident of this that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Praise God! I know God has started this work in me and it will be finished one day. Whether it takes a few months or the rest of my life, God has promised to complete the work He started in me!! I am so thankful that I have that hope. That means I need to continue to persevere and press into Jesus. By pressing into Jesus, that freedom will come!
Something else that has been encouraging to me is the whole idea of the hard times in life. I have realized that we all need them and they are a season in our lives. BUT, if we persevere in them, God will carry us through and help us. We will grow from our circumstances and know that God has allowed whatever has happened to teach and grow me in my relationship with Him. So the encouraging thing is that God allows these things to make me more like Christ! Woohoo!! How exciting!! It's that whole idea of hope again that even though this circumstance really stinks, I know God is faithful and is making me more like Christ through it. And those hard times just make us cling to God even more! So I just praise God because even though life is hard and is not always great, I can still praise Him because I know He is good and faithful! I just can't stop saying it! God is so good and so faithful!! =)
Well, I think that is all for now. I will try to keep this updated a little bit more often. As the weeks go on, the school will probably get a lot harder for me. But I am excited to say that August of this year, I will be graduating from college!!! Yay!! I decided to go ahead and finish a whole year early! I am very excited and looking forward to what's to come after college!! Okay, well God bless and have a great day!!
Love,
Michelle
Friday, November 2, 2007
Wicked!!
Okay, I have not dropped off the face of the earth, I promise! I am just in London for the week on holidays and haven't gotten around to writing a blog in a while! So sorry! Just know that I am well and having a great time here!! I saw the musical Wicked last night which was incredible!! I loved it! I've seen Big Ben and lots of other great sights here in London...and been riding the Underground like crazy! Anyway, I was in Dublin earlier in the week and had a great time there too! Got to go back to Greystones, my home from two years ago! It was nice going back but I realized it's not my favorite anymore. I absolutely LOVE Galway now! I think I love it because I have made connections and friendships with people there. I've really made it home. I love it!! But I still love Greystones (especially the fish and chips from the harbor which I had twice the three days I was there!) Oh yeah, random...I got this ginormous bruise on my backside on Monday. I totally slide down the steps of the double decker bus! It hurt real bad and is the biggest bruise I've ever had in my entire life! Kira drew a face on him and we named him Fred! Good times! But yeah, uhm can't think of anything else to write. I should probably get going cause other people probably want to use the internet! But I will try to write another update once I get back to Galway on Monday! Hope all are well! I'll be putting up some pictures once I get back! That's all for now though! Ciao! =)
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Your Blood Washes Over Me!
So I'm sitting here working in the bookstore and it's pretty quiet. A few people came in today, but not many. It's usually very quiet in here. Sometimes it's no fun because everyone is over in the cafe working and together and you are stuck here in the bookstore away from everyone and all the kids. I'm trying to have a good attitude about it and actually, it has been really nice just taking some time out for myself. Today I was able to just have my quiet time in here. And I'm listening to Hillsong as well while I'm having my quiet time so I guess it can't get much better than that!! I keep listening to this one song though and it's really just hitting me and I am just so thankful for what Jesus has done in my life. The chorus goes something like this: "And you saw me, when you took the crown of thorns. And your blood washed over me. And you love me, through the nails that you bore. Your blood washes over me!" Wow! Awesome! I love it! I am so thankful for the grace and mercy God has given me. I've screwed up a lot in my life but the blood that Jesus sacrificed on the cross covered all my sin and all of my faults and mess ups! And the cool thing is that he did see me when he was on the cross. He saw all of us! And he died because he loved us unconditionally and wanted us to experience life to the fullest. No person on earth can ever love me as much as God loves me!! Wow, I know all of this but it's just good to always be reminded of what Jesus has done for us!!
"Thank you Lord for loving me even through my mess ups! And even though I continue to stumble and fall, you pick me back up and keep me going. You have redeemed my life and lead me in the way of fullness of life! I thank you that you give me purpose and meaning to life! I love you Lord!"
Well, things are going really well here. I am making great friends, lasting friendships actually. I am going to be so sad when I have to leave. I am learning so much from everyone here, just growing together. It's incredible what the Lord is teaching me and showing me through everyone here. And as for the kids, it is so awesome just to see them come in and hang out with all of us. You have to wonder what God is doing in their lives, how He is working. Some of them seriously come in all the time just to hang out and chat. Do the words that we say to them ever really get through? Do they see Jesus in our lives? Do they see something different? Are we even being a good example of Jesus to them? Some of them have been asking questions lately about Jesus, but I think they are just more interested in other things. I wish we could save them from hurt and pain. "Taste and see that the Lord is good." Just give Him a shot, you know? I mean, does it hurt anyone to at least give Him a shot? He brings purpose and meaning to life. He loves unconditionally. The road might not always be easy but He promises to never leave us or forsake us. He will be our strength and carry us through. How do you tell that to people? How do you show them Jesus? I know that the most important thing for me to do is to spend time with Jesus. Intimacy with Him. To know God better and draw near to Him. I guess after that God will just do the rest. I need to just be close to Him and hopefully by having that closeness to God, others will see and want to experience that as well. I have such a hard time though, spending time with Jesus. And you think it'd be easy because of all the things He's done for me, but let's face it, I get distracted so easy. It makes me sick sometimes too. I could be spending quality time with God and I am wasting my life away on facebook tagging pictures and checking out what other people wrote on my friend's walls. I can easily spend 4 or 5 hours on the internet and after I am done, feel like I haven't accomplished anything. After I get done with work, I am always so tired and sometimes the last place I want to go to is the Bible. I think that I can relax and just get on the internet for a little while. Then I end up spending an eternity on there and by the time I'm done, I am too tired to read and spend good time with Jesus. It's aweful but unfortunately, it's a pattern I've gotten myself in to. I don't manage my time well, even when it comes to homework. I am such a procrastinator and I need to work on that really bad. I need more discipline in my life. I don't know how I'm going to do it but I think it is something I have been convicted of lately. How am I spending my time and how am I doing good for the Kingdom of God? Well, I think I need to spend less time on the computer, that's just it. I think I'm going to have to limit myself to a certain amount of time on there. Seriously, it's like an addiction. And I need to get to bed earlier and make sure to set aside time either in the morning or at night to spend time with the Lord. I guess if anyone thinks about it, please pray for me. I know it's going to be hard (already is) and Satan is going to try to distract me every way possible. Pray for strength to keep my eyes on the Lord and to use my time wisely.
Well, I think that's about it for now. It's almost 1pm now and hopefully within the next hour or so I will get to eat lunch! (I am hungry!) Ooh, a customer just came in!! Well, I better go in case she needs any help! Thanks for your prayers and I pray a blessing over each person that reads this and that God will give you a refreshing of His love today!! Until next time, cheers!!
-Meeshie Moo =) (one of my many nicknames here, haha!)
"Thank you Lord for loving me even through my mess ups! And even though I continue to stumble and fall, you pick me back up and keep me going. You have redeemed my life and lead me in the way of fullness of life! I thank you that you give me purpose and meaning to life! I love you Lord!"
Well, things are going really well here. I am making great friends, lasting friendships actually. I am going to be so sad when I have to leave. I am learning so much from everyone here, just growing together. It's incredible what the Lord is teaching me and showing me through everyone here. And as for the kids, it is so awesome just to see them come in and hang out with all of us. You have to wonder what God is doing in their lives, how He is working. Some of them seriously come in all the time just to hang out and chat. Do the words that we say to them ever really get through? Do they see Jesus in our lives? Do they see something different? Are we even being a good example of Jesus to them? Some of them have been asking questions lately about Jesus, but I think they are just more interested in other things. I wish we could save them from hurt and pain. "Taste and see that the Lord is good." Just give Him a shot, you know? I mean, does it hurt anyone to at least give Him a shot? He brings purpose and meaning to life. He loves unconditionally. The road might not always be easy but He promises to never leave us or forsake us. He will be our strength and carry us through. How do you tell that to people? How do you show them Jesus? I know that the most important thing for me to do is to spend time with Jesus. Intimacy with Him. To know God better and draw near to Him. I guess after that God will just do the rest. I need to just be close to Him and hopefully by having that closeness to God, others will see and want to experience that as well. I have such a hard time though, spending time with Jesus. And you think it'd be easy because of all the things He's done for me, but let's face it, I get distracted so easy. It makes me sick sometimes too. I could be spending quality time with God and I am wasting my life away on facebook tagging pictures and checking out what other people wrote on my friend's walls. I can easily spend 4 or 5 hours on the internet and after I am done, feel like I haven't accomplished anything. After I get done with work, I am always so tired and sometimes the last place I want to go to is the Bible. I think that I can relax and just get on the internet for a little while. Then I end up spending an eternity on there and by the time I'm done, I am too tired to read and spend good time with Jesus. It's aweful but unfortunately, it's a pattern I've gotten myself in to. I don't manage my time well, even when it comes to homework. I am such a procrastinator and I need to work on that really bad. I need more discipline in my life. I don't know how I'm going to do it but I think it is something I have been convicted of lately. How am I spending my time and how am I doing good for the Kingdom of God? Well, I think I need to spend less time on the computer, that's just it. I think I'm going to have to limit myself to a certain amount of time on there. Seriously, it's like an addiction. And I need to get to bed earlier and make sure to set aside time either in the morning or at night to spend time with the Lord. I guess if anyone thinks about it, please pray for me. I know it's going to be hard (already is) and Satan is going to try to distract me every way possible. Pray for strength to keep my eyes on the Lord and to use my time wisely.
Well, I think that's about it for now. It's almost 1pm now and hopefully within the next hour or so I will get to eat lunch! (I am hungry!) Ooh, a customer just came in!! Well, I better go in case she needs any help! Thanks for your prayers and I pray a blessing over each person that reads this and that God will give you a refreshing of His love today!! Until next time, cheers!!
-Meeshie Moo =) (one of my many nicknames here, haha!)
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Encouraged
I know I just wrote a blog only a few short days ago but I really felt like writing another one!! And hopefully this one will be significantly shorter than all the other ones I've written!! Haha!!
Well, I just am excited about this week. It's just been a good week. I mean yeah, crap has happened, but over all, I have felt really encouraged this week. Do you ever feel like when you first start working somewhere new that you just don't seem to be getting everything or are still really far behind? Or you question if you've really picked up anything at all since you've first arrived there? Well, that's sorta how I've felt for a while. I am definitely one of those people who likes to be perfect at something the first time I do it. Well, I think God is trying to teach me that I won't always get it right the first time and that's okay. You've got to learn and make mistakes. It doesn't mean I'm incapable, I just have to learn, practice, and be patient. I just have noticed that I get real self-conscious, always worrying what other people are going to think or if they'll laugh at me or think differently of me if I don't do it right or screw up something. Well, I'm trying to work through that. I don't want to be like that. I want to have confidence in what I do, no matter what it is and confidence that even if I do mess up, it's okay and I don't have to worry what everyone else thinks. I'm just trying to remember that my confidence comes from Christ and that I find my worth completely in Him.
Well anyway, kind of to go along with all of that, I was put on dishes on Thursday. Dishes are probably the worst and most depressing job ever and Tommy put me on dishes all by myself. Now, you must understand, most of the time at work Sarah, CJ, and myself are always put with someone else. We always help other people their jobs and never really do a station on our own. Well anyway, I got put on dishes with no help. It was okay though because I really got the full experience of what it would be like to actually be an intern and work here like the interns and staff do every day. Well, the dishes actually went well and I had a little bit of help toward the end of the day from Maren but for the most part, I did the dishes all by myself and cleaned my area and everything. And when I was finished, I felt so accomplished and so good about myself. I worked hard that day. I worked my butt off. And I finished the task!!! It was such an incredible feeling!!! I know it doesn't sound like much to you but to me, it was kind of the encouragment I needed. It felt like I was actually capable of doing something by myself, like I had made progress here!!!
And then today happened. Saturday is usually a lighter day and Mike's daughters Christina and Luccia came and helped. They are so eager to learn and help and get in on the action (they are 13 and 14 years old). So anyway, Luccia followed me around for the morning and I worked behind the counter a little bit. She started asking me questions: "How do you use the till? What numbers do you press? How do you do this? How do you do that?" It was brilliant because I actually knew what to tell her, how to show her what to do!! It's one of those things that you don't realize how much you know or how far you've come until someone new comes. Then you see how far you really have come!! I was able to explain a bunch of things to Luccia and even make her lunch for her (which, she said tasted very good!!) But anyway, it just made me so happy and so encouraged. I don't feel like I have to answer as much questions anymore. It's starting to make sense now!! Praise God!! I think it's the encouragment I needed!!!
On a completely different note, last night we had a small group celebration thingy. The whole church ended up being there because it was actually a welcome home party for a couple that had just gotten married. But it was so fun to be with the church and the college age people. We are all starting to connect really well! It's so neat forming friendships with people from Malaysia, Ireland, Brazil, Spain, and wherever else we're all from!! Such a diverse group but one thing we all have in common and that is a love for Jesus Christ!! I think that's one of the things that I appreciate most about being here and working at An Tobar Nua. All the people here really do love Jesus and we're all trying to grow together and encourage one another along in our walks with the Lord. I am so thankful for them and the fact that we all get to journey along together!!
I do have a prayer request if you all could be praying. I am really praying about some big things right now that I can't share about just yet. It would be a big change in my life but if it's what the Lord wants then I want to follow His will. But please just pray that the Lord would open wide the doors and really make it known to me what He wants me to do. Pray that the Lord would also give my parents wisdom in the situation and that He would speak to them about the situation. Pray that God would just make His way known to me for this next phase in my life. I am sure within the next month or so I will be able to share more in detail what is going on but for the time being, please just pray for clarity from God. I'd really appreciate it so much!!
Well, it's super late here and I have church in the morning! Then I'm off to do some grocery shopping and chatting and drinking chai lattes with a friend! God bless!!!
-Meeshie =)
Well, I just am excited about this week. It's just been a good week. I mean yeah, crap has happened, but over all, I have felt really encouraged this week. Do you ever feel like when you first start working somewhere new that you just don't seem to be getting everything or are still really far behind? Or you question if you've really picked up anything at all since you've first arrived there? Well, that's sorta how I've felt for a while. I am definitely one of those people who likes to be perfect at something the first time I do it. Well, I think God is trying to teach me that I won't always get it right the first time and that's okay. You've got to learn and make mistakes. It doesn't mean I'm incapable, I just have to learn, practice, and be patient. I just have noticed that I get real self-conscious, always worrying what other people are going to think or if they'll laugh at me or think differently of me if I don't do it right or screw up something. Well, I'm trying to work through that. I don't want to be like that. I want to have confidence in what I do, no matter what it is and confidence that even if I do mess up, it's okay and I don't have to worry what everyone else thinks. I'm just trying to remember that my confidence comes from Christ and that I find my worth completely in Him.
Well anyway, kind of to go along with all of that, I was put on dishes on Thursday. Dishes are probably the worst and most depressing job ever and Tommy put me on dishes all by myself. Now, you must understand, most of the time at work Sarah, CJ, and myself are always put with someone else. We always help other people their jobs and never really do a station on our own. Well anyway, I got put on dishes with no help. It was okay though because I really got the full experience of what it would be like to actually be an intern and work here like the interns and staff do every day. Well, the dishes actually went well and I had a little bit of help toward the end of the day from Maren but for the most part, I did the dishes all by myself and cleaned my area and everything. And when I was finished, I felt so accomplished and so good about myself. I worked hard that day. I worked my butt off. And I finished the task!!! It was such an incredible feeling!!! I know it doesn't sound like much to you but to me, it was kind of the encouragment I needed. It felt like I was actually capable of doing something by myself, like I had made progress here!!!
And then today happened. Saturday is usually a lighter day and Mike's daughters Christina and Luccia came and helped. They are so eager to learn and help and get in on the action (they are 13 and 14 years old). So anyway, Luccia followed me around for the morning and I worked behind the counter a little bit. She started asking me questions: "How do you use the till? What numbers do you press? How do you do this? How do you do that?" It was brilliant because I actually knew what to tell her, how to show her what to do!! It's one of those things that you don't realize how much you know or how far you've come until someone new comes. Then you see how far you really have come!! I was able to explain a bunch of things to Luccia and even make her lunch for her (which, she said tasted very good!!) But anyway, it just made me so happy and so encouraged. I don't feel like I have to answer as much questions anymore. It's starting to make sense now!! Praise God!! I think it's the encouragment I needed!!!
On a completely different note, last night we had a small group celebration thingy. The whole church ended up being there because it was actually a welcome home party for a couple that had just gotten married. But it was so fun to be with the church and the college age people. We are all starting to connect really well! It's so neat forming friendships with people from Malaysia, Ireland, Brazil, Spain, and wherever else we're all from!! Such a diverse group but one thing we all have in common and that is a love for Jesus Christ!! I think that's one of the things that I appreciate most about being here and working at An Tobar Nua. All the people here really do love Jesus and we're all trying to grow together and encourage one another along in our walks with the Lord. I am so thankful for them and the fact that we all get to journey along together!!
I do have a prayer request if you all could be praying. I am really praying about some big things right now that I can't share about just yet. It would be a big change in my life but if it's what the Lord wants then I want to follow His will. But please just pray that the Lord would open wide the doors and really make it known to me what He wants me to do. Pray that the Lord would also give my parents wisdom in the situation and that He would speak to them about the situation. Pray that God would just make His way known to me for this next phase in my life. I am sure within the next month or so I will be able to share more in detail what is going on but for the time being, please just pray for clarity from God. I'd really appreciate it so much!!
Well, it's super late here and I have church in the morning! Then I'm off to do some grocery shopping and chatting and drinking chai lattes with a friend! God bless!!!
-Meeshie =)
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Cork, Turning 21, Clifden, and Divine Appointments =)
Oh my word I am so behind in my blogs! And I am sure you all are interested as to what's going on! Ah, so much has happened in the past couple of weeks and I will try to give you the condensed version (but beware, it will probably still be really long!!)
Okay so let's see, last time I wrote, I was basically having a super hard time and really just feeling attacked. But God really helped me make it through. He knew what I needed and that was a day off! So praise God, last Saturday (the 29th) I had a day off from work and decided to go to Cork with my friend Paul from work. It was such a refreshing day! We basically left all our worries and all the crap from Galway and from work in Galway and just enjoyed the day worry free! Paul is a great friend too. We basically just talked straight for the whole day and walked around the city of Cork. It was about a four hour bus ride there and back (so 8 hours total on the bus!) and then just hanging out in the city for the day. We had a lot of funny moments and it was good just having deep conversation with him about God and life and whatever else! So yeah, thank the Lord for a day to just relax and get away!!
Oh yeah, I forgot to say, the night before we had a small group with people from church. It was a lot of fun. Such a mix of people too...we have people from America, Ireland, Malaysia, Spain, and I think probably some other places! It's so great getting us together! We even played a couple of game of Mafia together, which was awesome. It was fun just getting to know people.
Well, Tuesday finally hit and I turned 21!!! Woohoo!! I'm 21 now! I can't believe it! It was a good day, not really eventful or anything. I worked and then had class and yeah just nothing real big. Tonight, though, Tommy and Megan decided that they wanted to throw me a little party and bake me a cake. So we're gonna celebrate my birthday next Wednesday!! Woohoo! Fun stuff! It's so weird though, thinking about my birtday...I really am growing up. Time has flown by and before I know it, another 21 years will go by. Who knows where I'll be or what I'll be doing, if I'll be married and have kids or what. Craziness!!! =)
Okay so then the next day, a cool thing happened. I was in the bookstore during Aine's lunch break and this man came in. I asked him if he needed any help and basically he just started opening up and talked about how he was interested in Christianity and was just seeking. What an awesome opportunity God had laid before me!! He started asking questions and I tried to help him out the best I could, trying to share from my own life and belief in Jesus Christ. Then Mike popped in to my head. Mike works with the ministry and is really gifted in talking to people, especially like this. So I asked the man if I could phone Mike and the man was like, "Well, I normally would say no to something like this but today I'm going to say yes." I was so excited! So Mike came downstairs and talked to this man in the coffee shop for a while. Then, I was in the book store later and he came in and thanked me. I told him I'd be praying for him and see him at church (he actually went to the church where I go but we hadn't met yet). It was so neat just to be a part of it! I think he's just really seeking and wants to know that God really is for real. So yeah, God is good!!!
Okay so then that night I got to see my roommate Kira!! She is in Ireland for the semester as well helping with the Irish freshman who are in Greystones. It was so refreshing just to be with one of my closest friends and talk about what God was doing in our lives! It was fun meeting the freshman too and thinking back to when I was in their position! Good times! Then the next day the big group came to the cafe! That was probably one of the craziest days of my entire life! It was so busy! It was non-stop for the entire morning and probably up until 2pm that day (which is not so normal for us). It was neat though getting to see the big group. We got a chance to share with them about our experience here. I think some of them were actually interested in it. It was cool though cause that day that they came, I really began feeling like I am getting connected with the kids and can interact with them. I don't feel as much like the new person anymore (which is so exciting!) =) Oh yeah, then that night we went to Da Roberta's which was incredible!! It's the best Italian restaurant ever! I stuffed my face! Haha! It was worth it though! I'll have to eat there one more time before I leave here.
Okay so anyway, we unexpectedly got to go on staff retreat this past weekend!! It was so much fun! We drove to Clifden, which was about an hour or so away. We got this big house with a bunch of rooms in it. It was tons of fun. I stayed up till 4:30 the first night talking with Leanna and Paul, actually about deep stuff! Haha! And Paul and I decided to make Skittle Juice to have a sugar high. It consisted of skittles, coke, and red bull. Good times!! I roomed with Megan which was tons of fun!! She is an amazing woman! It was such a good weekend cause I really feel like I got to know people better, especially my Irish friends like Megan, Tommy, and Paul. They are incredible people and it's so hard to think about leaving them in December (and even leaving Galway and the ministry). I really do love it a lot here. I have definitely been blessed this semester by different people in my life. Oh yeah, something else during the weekend. Well, on Saturday Leanna and I decided to hike Sky Road. We found this castle and just took some time out by ourselves. Well, this girl saw me from a distance and we started talking. I found out she had come from Australia to Ireland and was looking for work and might be in the Galway area. Well anyway, we just started talking and I told her all about the ministry and the cafe at An Tobar Nua and just tried to share with her some of my heart and it was just an awesome opportunity. She seemed so intersted and I have her the info as to where we were located and told her to come on by whenever she came back to Galway. She said she'd definitely stop in the shop and I even told her about small group. It was just another awesome opportunity God gave me and I have been praying for her as well and hope that a seed was just planted in her life and that others will come along the way and just help her grow even more!!
So yeah, life is pretty good. I am definitely tired though. Work is exhausting. By the time I get done, I pretty much don't want to do anything. I did take a walk on the Prom last night which was good. The weather is still nice enough that I can walk outside and not get too cold. The weather here is so crazy. Just the other morning, it was all rainy and nasty. Then, the next thing you know, by the end of the day, it was all sunny and beautiful and you wouldn't have even thought that it was so bad earlier in the day. Like they say, the weather in Ireland is predictably unpredictable!!
If you all could, please keep me in your prayers. I have a lot of things going on at the moment that I am praying about. I am just trying to seek direction for my life and where God wants me. I will share more in detail later but just pray that God would give me a clear answer for what He wants me to do with my life. Please continue to pray for roommate situations. I've been having difficulties since the start of the trip but I know God is faithful and will help me through. Just pray for continued strength and a Christ-like attitude.
Well, I think that might be it for now. Thanks for your prayers and anyone ever has any specific questions about anything here, please ask!! Or if you want to know how something is done or whatever, please ask! I'd love to hear how everyone back home (or wherever you're at) is doing!!! God bless you all!!
-Michelle
Just an encouraging verse we read during our staff prayer time today..."But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a poeple, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." - 1 Peter 2:9-10
"Father, I praise you for saving my life and showing me mercy. I thank you that I am your child and I belong to you. Father, I pray for all the people that I love and are dear and special to me to experience the fullness of you and your love for them. I pray that all would taste and see that you are good! Thank you for rescuing me out of darkness and bringing me into your light! You are amazing God!! I will declare your praises forever Lord! You are my rock and my shield and my place of refuge! I love you Jesus!!"
Okay so let's see, last time I wrote, I was basically having a super hard time and really just feeling attacked. But God really helped me make it through. He knew what I needed and that was a day off! So praise God, last Saturday (the 29th) I had a day off from work and decided to go to Cork with my friend Paul from work. It was such a refreshing day! We basically left all our worries and all the crap from Galway and from work in Galway and just enjoyed the day worry free! Paul is a great friend too. We basically just talked straight for the whole day and walked around the city of Cork. It was about a four hour bus ride there and back (so 8 hours total on the bus!) and then just hanging out in the city for the day. We had a lot of funny moments and it was good just having deep conversation with him about God and life and whatever else! So yeah, thank the Lord for a day to just relax and get away!!
Oh yeah, I forgot to say, the night before we had a small group with people from church. It was a lot of fun. Such a mix of people too...we have people from America, Ireland, Malaysia, Spain, and I think probably some other places! It's so great getting us together! We even played a couple of game of Mafia together, which was awesome. It was fun just getting to know people.
Well, Tuesday finally hit and I turned 21!!! Woohoo!! I'm 21 now! I can't believe it! It was a good day, not really eventful or anything. I worked and then had class and yeah just nothing real big. Tonight, though, Tommy and Megan decided that they wanted to throw me a little party and bake me a cake. So we're gonna celebrate my birthday next Wednesday!! Woohoo! Fun stuff! It's so weird though, thinking about my birtday...I really am growing up. Time has flown by and before I know it, another 21 years will go by. Who knows where I'll be or what I'll be doing, if I'll be married and have kids or what. Craziness!!! =)
Okay so then the next day, a cool thing happened. I was in the bookstore during Aine's lunch break and this man came in. I asked him if he needed any help and basically he just started opening up and talked about how he was interested in Christianity and was just seeking. What an awesome opportunity God had laid before me!! He started asking questions and I tried to help him out the best I could, trying to share from my own life and belief in Jesus Christ. Then Mike popped in to my head. Mike works with the ministry and is really gifted in talking to people, especially like this. So I asked the man if I could phone Mike and the man was like, "Well, I normally would say no to something like this but today I'm going to say yes." I was so excited! So Mike came downstairs and talked to this man in the coffee shop for a while. Then, I was in the book store later and he came in and thanked me. I told him I'd be praying for him and see him at church (he actually went to the church where I go but we hadn't met yet). It was so neat just to be a part of it! I think he's just really seeking and wants to know that God really is for real. So yeah, God is good!!!
Okay so then that night I got to see my roommate Kira!! She is in Ireland for the semester as well helping with the Irish freshman who are in Greystones. It was so refreshing just to be with one of my closest friends and talk about what God was doing in our lives! It was fun meeting the freshman too and thinking back to when I was in their position! Good times! Then the next day the big group came to the cafe! That was probably one of the craziest days of my entire life! It was so busy! It was non-stop for the entire morning and probably up until 2pm that day (which is not so normal for us). It was neat though getting to see the big group. We got a chance to share with them about our experience here. I think some of them were actually interested in it. It was cool though cause that day that they came, I really began feeling like I am getting connected with the kids and can interact with them. I don't feel as much like the new person anymore (which is so exciting!) =) Oh yeah, then that night we went to Da Roberta's which was incredible!! It's the best Italian restaurant ever! I stuffed my face! Haha! It was worth it though! I'll have to eat there one more time before I leave here.
Okay so anyway, we unexpectedly got to go on staff retreat this past weekend!! It was so much fun! We drove to Clifden, which was about an hour or so away. We got this big house with a bunch of rooms in it. It was tons of fun. I stayed up till 4:30 the first night talking with Leanna and Paul, actually about deep stuff! Haha! And Paul and I decided to make Skittle Juice to have a sugar high. It consisted of skittles, coke, and red bull. Good times!! I roomed with Megan which was tons of fun!! She is an amazing woman! It was such a good weekend cause I really feel like I got to know people better, especially my Irish friends like Megan, Tommy, and Paul. They are incredible people and it's so hard to think about leaving them in December (and even leaving Galway and the ministry). I really do love it a lot here. I have definitely been blessed this semester by different people in my life. Oh yeah, something else during the weekend. Well, on Saturday Leanna and I decided to hike Sky Road. We found this castle and just took some time out by ourselves. Well, this girl saw me from a distance and we started talking. I found out she had come from Australia to Ireland and was looking for work and might be in the Galway area. Well anyway, we just started talking and I told her all about the ministry and the cafe at An Tobar Nua and just tried to share with her some of my heart and it was just an awesome opportunity. She seemed so intersted and I have her the info as to where we were located and told her to come on by whenever she came back to Galway. She said she'd definitely stop in the shop and I even told her about small group. It was just another awesome opportunity God gave me and I have been praying for her as well and hope that a seed was just planted in her life and that others will come along the way and just help her grow even more!!
So yeah, life is pretty good. I am definitely tired though. Work is exhausting. By the time I get done, I pretty much don't want to do anything. I did take a walk on the Prom last night which was good. The weather is still nice enough that I can walk outside and not get too cold. The weather here is so crazy. Just the other morning, it was all rainy and nasty. Then, the next thing you know, by the end of the day, it was all sunny and beautiful and you wouldn't have even thought that it was so bad earlier in the day. Like they say, the weather in Ireland is predictably unpredictable!!
If you all could, please keep me in your prayers. I have a lot of things going on at the moment that I am praying about. I am just trying to seek direction for my life and where God wants me. I will share more in detail later but just pray that God would give me a clear answer for what He wants me to do with my life. Please continue to pray for roommate situations. I've been having difficulties since the start of the trip but I know God is faithful and will help me through. Just pray for continued strength and a Christ-like attitude.
Well, I think that might be it for now. Thanks for your prayers and anyone ever has any specific questions about anything here, please ask!! Or if you want to know how something is done or whatever, please ask! I'd love to hear how everyone back home (or wherever you're at) is doing!!! God bless you all!!
-Michelle
Just an encouraging verse we read during our staff prayer time today..."But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a poeple, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." - 1 Peter 2:9-10
"Father, I praise you for saving my life and showing me mercy. I thank you that I am your child and I belong to you. Father, I pray for all the people that I love and are dear and special to me to experience the fullness of you and your love for them. I pray that all would taste and see that you are good! Thank you for rescuing me out of darkness and bringing me into your light! You are amazing God!! I will declare your praises forever Lord! You are my rock and my shield and my place of refuge! I love you Jesus!!"
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