Day 7

So, today was day two of Impact Senior. I'm having a hard time finding the balance with these older girls. I want to do stuff with them but I don't want to follow them about too much either. I want to give them some space. So, it's weird going from spending all day with the Jr. High girls to leaving these girls to do their own thing. I sort of feel like I'm not doing my job. But, all 12 of these girls are really sweet.

Our yard time today went better than I expected since I have groups from two different churches. Most of them had comments to say and we had a really good talk. We talked about Christianity in our country and how the percentage of the unchurched is now like 90%! I can't believe that. The speaker last night said that it was up to their generation to make a stand and bring back Christianity to our country. He's right. It is up to their generation. It's up to every generation.

It's time for me to go to sleep, so I'll write more soon.

Life

Tonight was the last night of Impact Jr. Yet again, kids rushed the stage wanting to be baptized. There were probably 30 of them. It was amazing. Before the singing began, two videos were played. One video was for Father's Day. It showed all of the Dad here with their children. It was really sweet and it made me think of my own dad. I called him today to tell him Happy Father's Day and that I left his present by my dresser in my room. Just as I expected he said he'd wait until I get home before he opens it. My dad is great and I'm so lucky to have him. I am constantly thanking God for the parents he gave me. I am so blessed!

The second video showed all of the baptisms that happened last night/this morning. It was amazing!! It was so awesome seeing about 20 or more middle school children giving their lives to God. It was touching to see the people baptizing them wrap their arms around them as soon as they came up out of the water. Very moving. I love knowing that all of this children will one day be in Heaven. This past week I have realized exactly how fragile life is since Will's drowning. I don't know if it's because I couldn't go to the funeral or what, but it just doesn't seem real. But I've seen that you never know when your life will end or how long you have left. When we are young we think we have years and years ahead of us, but that's no promise.
That's why it kills me when people say that they will "change later" or that they're just "going through a phase." I hurt for them and it really just doesn't make sense to me at all.

Day 5

Today has been a really good day. The yard time wasn't as filled with conversation as it was yesterday, but I think the girls were all sort of tired.
The lessons and classes have all been really good. Last night about twenty kids went forward to baptized! It was awesome!

I have been to two classes today. One was "Escaping without blame" and the other was "Escaping to Heaven." Both classes left me thinking about how awesome Heaven will be. I was just thinking of life here on earth and what it would be like with no sin. That would be great, but Heaven will be so much better than that because we will be with Jesus and in the presence of God! How awesome!

The videos and skits here at Impact are hilarious. Today they showed one called "Chewbacca Lawyer" that made me laugh so hard I almost cried. The kids around me didn't really get it and they kept turning around and looking at me because I was laughing so hard. Also, all of my campers are doing impersonations of Cara. They think she is so hilarious and they keep doing impressions of her voices and stuff.

Anyway, that's about it for now. I'm about to have my dorm duty and a little bit of quiet. Tonight is the last night of Impact Jr. so I'm sure it'll be great.

Impact Update

So, it's day four of my Impact experience, day 2 of Impact Junior. I have a group of 9 middle school girls that I am responsible for. They are full of energy! Today we had what's called "yard time" where each group (the counselors and their kids) get together and talk about something from the recent lesson. That has been my favorite part of impact so far. The girls are only in Jr. High but they still have a desire to live for God and tell others about Him. I was really impressed with their answers to all of my questions. Their main struggle was being bold with sharing Jesus with others. I find it interesting that although that does get easier with spiritual maturity, it is still something that the devil continually throws at us. He likes to make us think that no one cares what we have to say or that maybe others will think we are stupid or won't want to hear it. There are a million excuses that we come up with for not sharing Christ with others.

I have also been to two different classes. One was an all girls class called "Escaping Depravity" (since Escape is this year's theme: 2 Peter 1:4) and it was about what sins we needed to get rid of and how stay away from them. Granted, these classes are geared towards middle school aged kids, but it was something I needed to hear. I also went to a class on Hell. It was called "Escaping Destruction." The speaker shared with us lots of verses about Hell and then showed us this really creepy movie about Hell. It was disturbing. I left praying that none of my friends would ever have to face that.

All in all, things are going good. I'm pretty tired though. Cara got in a ketchup fight with another one of the counselors at lunch. Cara took an entire ketchup bottle and just squirted it all up and down this guy's shirt and face. Then he squirted her all down the back and in her hair. It was hilarious! Somehow ketchup ended up all over me as well. It was pretty funny watching the two of them chasing each other around the cafeteria with Cara screaming at the top of her lungs. Anyway, I'll try to update again when I get the chance. I'm staying pretty busy so I'm not sure when it will be.

Day One, Counselor Training

So, Cara and I arrived at Lipscomb University today around 6:00 ready to be trained. We checked in, had a quick dinner, and then made our way to the auditorium where we would begin our first praise and worship session of the ten days. It was great! I love nothing more than singing with so many other Christians who are also singing their heart out to God and meaning every word of it. It's so easy to get caught up in the routine of things and not even think about what you are saying. I'm really thankful for this time to be able to get away from the every day things to just spend time focusing on God. There are many songs that really touched my heart tonight, but I will share with you the one that meant the most. Here are the lyrics:
It's called "How Deep the Father's Love for Us"

How deep the Father's love for us
How vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son
To make a wretch His treasure

How great the pain of searing loss
The Father turns His face away
As wounds which mar the Chosen One
Bring many sons to glory

Behold the man upon a cross
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will nost boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom

IMPACT

I was planning on writing this post later tomorrow (Tuesday), but due to recent events I don't think that I will find the time. I am leaving for Impact counselor training on weds. afternoon and I will be there until the 25th. Cara is coming home from Germany tomorrow and she will be going with me as well. I am looking forward to her return and the fun that we will have together on our trip up to Nashville and the days to follow. Weds night is the training and I think that the Jr. High kids will arrive on Thursday for Impact Junior. I haven't spent much time around Jr. High kids lately so I'm a little nervous of how things will go. Monday all of the high schoolers will arrive for Impact Sr.
Impact is referred to as a church camp but it's not one of those out in the woods live in cabins kind of camps. It's more like camp war eagle but not drawn out and much more fun. In the mornings and the evenings, the auditorium at Lipscomb University is completely filled with people singing praise as loud as they can to God. It's something I've not experienced anywhere else. There are lots of hilarious skits and movies and free time and equipping classes as well. I am looking forward to what I will be able to share with my campers as well as what they will teach me. I know that it will be a time of spiritual growth and I'm very excited about that. It's one of those "mountain top experiences" that you only get once in a while. Or at least that's how it was four years ago. We'll see what happens this week. I am bringing my laptop with me so hopefully I will be able to update on what I am learning/experiencing.

The Wedding

I just returned from Nashville yesterday. I was there attending/handing out programs for Lindsay and Daniel's wedding. It was a weeking filled with fun and happiness. For those of you who don't know, Lindsay was my roommate last year and I really got to experience her relationship with Daniel first hand. Their relationship is filled with love for God and love for each other and as I told them at the rehearsal dinner, there is no doubt in my mind that they will spend the rest of their lives happily married. Because of the events of the weekend, and because I spent most of my time with 3-7 girls, most of the conversation consisted of talk of relationships and marriage. That combined with many inspiring speeches at the rehearsal dinner led me to think of my life and relationships. David, the best man and Daniel's younger brother, impressed me very much with his speech. He said he could see Daniel sprinting as fast as he could toward God and then Daniel looks over and there's Lindsay running right beside him. He talked about how they were helping each other grow closer to God and pushing each other on. He also said that God used Daniel to show Lindsay how much He loves her and he uses Lindsay to show Daniel how much He loves him. I have tried to repeat this to people but I'm not sure if it's coming out right. However, that's the gist. Sorry if it doesn't make sense the way I'm wording it.
All this to say, with each wedding or each conversation, I learn more about how I want my relationship to be with my future husband. I really just want it to be a relationship that people can see God in always. A relationship where we put each other first and always work to bring the other closer to God. That's what we're here for anyway, right? To glorify God and to help others do the same.

Summer Update

Today has been a great day! I actually got to sleep until I woke up (meaning woke up naturally, everyone sleeps until they wake up, really). This summer has been a much needed time of relaxation for me. The past school year was probably the most difficult and stressful year of my life and now God has blessed me with some time to recover. And recovering is exactly what I'm doing. Since I'm going to Italy for a month (leaving July 7th) I had no time to really get a job and there are no classes left for me to take. So, I'm at home just enjoying myself. My summer started off with a trip to Las Vegas with the family. It was lots of fun and really interesting. We got to see the Grand Canyon which is something I have always wanted. We also enjoyed spending quality family time. We have some hilarious moments and some hilarious pictures to show from it. After visiting Vegas I got to go down to Auburn for a few days to take care of some things for my Italian Visa and spend some time with Josh, J.P., Brett, Shelley, and Codi. This included going to a wedding in Mobile with Josh and his best friend Michael. The wedding was fun too, even though Josh never did ask me to dance. (He prefers dancing in the aisles at Target.)
I left Auburn on Sunday, the 29th and came back home to Florence. I enjoyed Memorial day (from the previous entry) and just spending time with my family and getting some rest. Josh came up to Florence for a visit on Thursday and stayed until Sunday. We had a really good time going out on the lake, cooking out, eating out, reading, watching movies (we both really liked the Aviator but I was the only one who stayed awake during Vanity Fair which was a little depressing), and just hanging out. I was sad to see him go since I won't see him for another three weeks.
Yesterday I went with mom to Hartselle for some antique shopping. We had a really good time and I got some new soap (I know that sounds weird but it's supposed to be really good soap) and two new Trapp candles. I really love candles because they add so much to your room. If anyone doesn't know what to get me for my birthday or christmas, you can get me a yankee candle, trapp candle, or any other candle that smells good and actually makes the room smell good too. Yankee candles can be found at cracker barrell and hallmark stores. I recommend them to anyone who is a candle lover too. Mom and I also bought some new coffee flavors to try and a few wedding gifts.
I forgot to mention that while I've been home I've gotten to spend some time catching up with old friends and meeting some new ones. I always get so overwhelmed when it comes to keeping up with people because I feel that I can never stay on top of things and I don't want it to come across as a lack of caring for my friends, it's just a lack of time I have to keep up with them all. However, I think that most people feel this way. But, I did get to spend some time with Haley, one of my best friends since kindergarten. It was good to catch up on her life and all that she's doing. I'll write more on my friends later.
So, this brings me to today. I went to sleep last night around 11:00 (unusually early for me) and I didn't wake up until 12:40 today!!! You are probably thinking that I'm a bum but I really did need that. I haven't been able to sleep till I woke up naturally since Christmas break. After that I read my Impact Counselor book that just came in the mail and then read some You; The Owner's Manual (a book about how the body works and how to stay young- very interesting). So, that's my Summer update. I am currently reading that You book and the Chronicles of Narnia. I recommend them both to anyone.