Daily Bible Study

Hello Everyone - I just wanted to share with you where I spent my daily Bible study a couple of days ago. I went for a run/walk on Saturday morning and as I was walking I popped in my Ipod and turned on some Hillsong. The song that struck a chord with me that morning was called "To the Ends of the Earth." I felt God's Presence so much at that moment and I felt the urge to get my Bible out of my car and sit on a bench and do my Bible reading. This is where I sat:

And this was my view:

The pictures do not really do it justice, but if anyone would like to visit this park, it is Nathaniel Green Park on Scenic in Springfield. It is one my favorite places to workout. I am usually not a nature person, but I am able to appreciate God's wonders so easily here.

The words of "To the Ends of the Earth" are:

"Love unfailing

Overtaking my heart

You take me in

Finding peace again

Fear is lost in all You are

And I would give the world to tell Your story

'Cause I know that You've called me

I know that You've called me

I've lost myself for good within Your promise

I won't hide it, I won't hide it

Jesus, I believe in you

And I would go the ends of the earth

To the ends of the earth

For You alone are the Son of God

And all the world will see

That You are God, You are God"

Where will you go for Him?

Trinity Freewill Baptist Church

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to share my need with Trinity. The current pastor is Donnie Wells and he was the past at Bado for several years. It was such a blessing! I never thought I would walk out of the church feeling so encouraged. Just the service itself was a blessing. Donnie allowed for people to sing any special songs that they felt led to sing and then there was a wonderful time of testimony. I spoke for about 20 minutes what was on my heart and it was well received by the congregation. I also had the opportunity to speak with a young girl who surrendered to missions last year. She is a junior and college and so far ahead of where I was at when I was her age! I am proud of her and I do not really know her! It was a blessed night!

This coming up Sunday I am sharing with my church in Springfield, Hamlin Baptist. This church is near and dear to my heart so I am excited about telling them what is going on. I have already shared with them several times, but they are going to take a love offering this week so pray about that.

Yesterday SEND contacted me and asked if I could be IN Japan by June 22nd. There are other short-term missionaries arriving at that time and that week is the SEND Family Conference and they want me to attend that. I, of course, said yes! So that is overwhelming that I am actually getting a date set! I am behind on my support raising, but I have decided that if I do not raise the full $19,000 (which I have faith I will by the time I leave) I am going to stay until my account is empty. Also, my second newsletter should be mailed out next week so be looking for that!

THANKS FOR EVERYTHING!

Less Wise, More Stressed!

On April 8th, I had my wisdom teeth removed so I am officially less wise! The following few days were very uneventful with little complications (besides a minor allergic reaction to pain medication and numerous nauseous moments thanks to other pain medication). I am on the road to healing.

School is winding down. I graduate in less than a month!!!! I am SO EXCITED! I can't believe that 4 weeks from today I will have a B.S. in Criminology and a B.S. in Sociology with a minor in Psychology! All the work has paid off. I will also be inducted into the national honor society for Criminology and Sociology due to my grades in each respective field. I am pretty proud at the moment! :) I am not sending out invitations (thanks, MOM!! lol) but my graduation is at 10:00 on May 15th and EVERYONE is invited.

Preparation for Japan is rolling on. I am starting to get prepared by gathering things I will need to take and thinking about what I am going to take. I have several support raising opportunities coming up. Please pray for these opportunities. I am working on my second newsletter so it should be coming out soon. I would like to thank everyone who have given! It has been a blessing and I am excited for each and everyone of you to be a partner with me in my mission to Japan. Everything about Japan is starting to come to a head and I am beginning to get stressed out, but I am putting full faith into to God's will and He will provide what I need. He knows the struggles and the road blocks in the way and He will open doors that needs to be opened and close others. However, as you are praying this week, pray for my preparation and that I make the decisions that God would want me to make and I continue to stay in His will!

Here and Now

This past weekend I was supposed to lead a young, teen girls group in a Disciple Now weekend, but due to the death of my grandmother I was unable to fulfill the commitment. My wonderful friends, Jenni and Claire, filled in for me and it was a wonderful weekend. I thought the material for the Bible studies was really good so I have decided to study it in depth on my own. It focuses on the HERE AND NOW. The main theme is Joshua's life.

The first lesson is challenging people to live in the here and now for Jesus. I think this is a wonderful message and I can really apply it to my life right now. Many times we are searching for God's will in our lives and when we figure it out we wait for it. For instance, God's will may be for someone to get married and have a family. Well, they wait to truly live for Jesus until that occurs. For me, I feel God's plan for my immediate future is to tell Japan about Him for 6 months. Well, I find myself putting my testament to Christ on hold. I am not looking for opportunities to work for Christ now. It is like I am storing all of my Christian energy for Japan. So I challenge you to find something you can do NOW. Someway that you can serve Jesus today and tomorrow and the next week. Don't wait for God to revel His plan for your life; don't wait for some major event to happen. God won't reveal His plan for you unless you are working towards it. He wants your help in His kingdom, so give it to Him!

Thank you for all of your love and support! I have been truly blessed in the last couple of months!

The Past Several Weeks

I am horrible at this blog thing! :) I don't take the time to do it right. Maybe that should have been my New Years resolution! haha

Well, support raising is going well. I am speaking at churches every weekend I can. The response is still awesome! Last week I spoke at Bado (my home church). It was a fantastic opportunity to tell my story to people that know me so well and let them know what part they played in my life! Hopefully I was able to encourage and challenge them. For next couple of weeks, I am not speaking at churches. This week I was supposed to be doing a Disciple Now weekend, but my grandmother passed and I will be with my family. The next weekend is Easter and I am getting my wisdom teeth out a few days before Easter so I figured it was not a good idea to talk for any length of time!

As I mentioned previously, my grandmother passed away. She passed away April 1. Her name was Edith Delaney; she was my mom's mother. It is a very sad time in my family, but how much I wanted her to be with Jesus. I am so grateful that we have the promise of eternal life with Jesus if He is in our hearts! What a comfort it is for me and my family to know she is know resting my Jesus' arms! Please keep my family in your prayers, specifically my mom, Nancy, and her two sisters, Judy and Betty. If you would like to read me about Grandma, you can visit my cousins blog. It is on my sidebar and it is titiled Heart Prints. She is much better at blogging and writing! Thank you for Melissa for your memories (the tears they have caused) and the pictures!