oh lord, send me

the good Lord has called me, and i will be spending my summer interning in kenya, africa. working with uhuru child, i will be discipling the true love of God through my teaching experience and faith. africa has been on my heart for several years now, and i am truly grateful to have the opportunity to make my dreams a reality. i pray as i start this journey that the Lord might work within me through strength and joy as i am able to share that with others.

thankful is an understatement

thanksgiving is a time to come together with loved ones and share joy and laughter with all. this week i have been beyond thankful as i have reunited with my best friends as well as family and four legged animals. i couldn't be more blessed. 

gosh almighty, where did the time go?

oh, how quickly life seems to go by. do you ever stop to think about how great it is though? these are some of my favorite moments from my first semester of college. 

becoming a phi mu

gaining hundreds of new sisters 

and even a new family

cheering on those rebs

even at 4am for in the morning

beating alabama

for the first time since 2003

meeting famous people 

making memories with new friends

and catching up with old ones

dancing the night away at phi mu formal

laughing as much as i can

and exploring through cotton fields

as this semester is coming to a close, i can only be thankful for everything i've been able to experience. i am confirmed by my new adventures and many new friends that i'm right where i need to be, and i can't wait for many more semesters to come with the people that i love. 

God - You are Our Finish Line

"We are surrounded by a great cloud of people whose lives tell us what faith means. So let us run the race that is before us and never give up. We should remove from our lives anything that would get the way and the sin that so easily holds us back. Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect. He suffered death on the cross. But he accepted the shame as if it were nothing because of the joy that God put before him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God's throne. Think about Jesus' example. He held on while wicked people were doing evil things to him. So do not get tired and stop trying."
          -Hebrews 12:1-3

Following Hebrews 11, we are surrounded in stories of faith. Just as the old covenant saints, they died in faith trusting that God would bring all of his promises to final fulfillment. Likewise, this is the point that the author makes in Hebrews 12. We are called to "run with endurance the race that is set before us" (12:1).

We see that the life of faith is like a race that must be run with endurance so that the finish line may be crossed. As a prospector of many running meets, I feel one main motivation to run this race is the great "cloud of witnesses" surrounding them. In any race, the stadium is filled with great amounts of fans cheering on runners to victory. In the race that is the Christian life, the old covenant saints described in chapter 11 are our biggest fans. They cheer us on through the example of their faithful endurance, waiting for the promises of God to come. They encourage us to run. "Run, brothers and sisters, run and do not stop holding onto Christ." Even when we feel hindered by the weight of our deepest sins, we can all remember that by ourselves we would never make it. But by the grace of God, our number one fan, he can lift us up even when the weight of the world or our Christian marathon seems to be slowing us down. For we know that "God works all things together for those who love him, who are called according to his purpose" (Romans 8:28).

So whether we are actually running or continuing to be the cheerleaders, may we all have the endurance to greet God at our finish line.


                                                                                 

Have a Little Faith

"Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not see it." 

-Hebrews 11:1

Can you ever really be certain about anything? Obviously, our finite minds can never know everything. And if we don't know everything, how can we be absolutely sure of anything? Who's to say what's completely right and real? Who can really know the truth?

You know the answer: God. He not only knows truth... He is truth. If you want to know what's real, get to know God. Romans 1:18-20 describes exactly how God reveals truth to us.

This is where faith comes in. Through faith, we don't have to be filled with doubts. Instead, we can be "sure of the things we hope for" and know the truth "even if we do not see it" (Hebrews 11:1). From the beginning of time, God has been the one revealing the mysteries of truth and faith to us all. Hebrews 11 states, "It was by faith we understand that the whole world was made by God's command so what we see was made by something we cannot see."

It was by faith that Noah heard God's warnings and was able to save the people from the flood.
It was by faith that Abraham obeyed God's call to leave and go to another place that God had promised to give him.
It was by faith that Sarah, Abraham's wife, gave birth as they both trusted God to do what he had promised.
It was by faith that Moses's parents were not afraid to disobey the king's orders and hide him for three months after birth.
It was by faith the people crossed the Red Sea as if it were dry land. But when the Egyptians crossed, they drowned.


Still need some convincing?

It is by faith that God has handpicked YOU. We have been put on this earth to be the examples just as those before us. By faith we have the confidence to face our deepest fears and desires. By faith we are able to stand true in the Word of our Lord and remain steadfast in every duty God has put before us. And even in the most challenging trials, it is by faith that God has planned to give us something more than we could ever imagine.

Sisters Aplenty

Phi Mu

My new home

A Beautiful Life

Today the world has lost someone truly special. Someone who dedicated his summer to serving young boys and being an example of God's love to them all. Although our hearts are heavy and full of grief, we may rejoice today knowing that The Lord has called you home. We may never understand why you had to go especially so soon. We were all just beginning our new adventures in college and were supposed to keep in touch while continuing to work summers together at camp, but sometimes we are reminded that God's plan is greater than our own. It's alright to not always understand; however, we can trust it knowing we trust the one who shapes our plan. MercyMe could not have said it better, "Greater is the one living inside of me than he who is living in the world." Our hearts are full of love from the one who created us all, but today we have opened a special place in our hearts for our great friend. 

May you have peace as you leave this home and join the home of God free of suffering and pain. John Hill, you were loved by many and will be missed more than ever. 

From the CIT group of 2013, we love you so much! Here is to the day that we all may be reunited once more. Until that time comes, we will be living our summers through what John has showed us. May we all change the lives of campers around us and be an example to all.