This is the sunset above the apts where I live.
The sunsets are one of Texas' redeming qualities.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Exausted!
Hey everybody! It was a good week! But I am exhausted. Fun fact: There are 66 AIMers in this class, 39 girls and 27 boys. How many books are in the Bible?!Old Testament? New?! :) Pretty cool huh? Anyway we were split into Area Church Groups this week. Because there are so many AIMers it would be impractical for all of us to attend one church so they split us up and spread us out over the state so that we can be a benefit to more churches and so that we can improve our serve. My area church is right here in Lubbock at Sunset COC. There are eight of us in our group three boys and five girls. We have been working with the youth at Sunset. This Wednesday night we put on a skit for the kids during class. It was really fun and I am really looking forward to getting to know the youth here better and hopefully we can influence them for good. This next weekend our group gets to help out with a camp for the sunset highschoolers called Blue Haven retreat. We are all super excited! It should be a blast. I am excited because it will give me a little taste of YBC which I missed this year because I was working. Well I caught the Lubbock Crud as it is called around here. Its a combination of not getting enough sleep, adjusting to a new climate, a weakened immune system and a nasty cold. Thank Heaven I didn't miss any classes, at least physically. I am better now thanks to my classmates who took great care of me and my roommates who are just awesome! I have a bit of homework to get caught up on however. I love you all and you are in my prayers. Please keep me in yours :D I especially need prayers this week and the next to stay focused as we head into midterms and various other activities. Pray that I do everything to the Glory of our Lord! Also be praying for Kane Berry, one of my classmates, as he is struggling with not one, but four rare forms of arthritis. He is the bravest person that I know and he never ever complains. He is willing to give you the shirt off his back if you needed it. Pray for relief and healing for him. Nothing that we do here is easy and I am sure that it is ten times as hard for him. Thanks! love you all!
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Whew! What a ride! I cant believe that I have only been here two weeks. It seems like a lifetime ago that I wrote my first blog. Sorry that I didn't update last week.
So when I arrived I was pretty nervous. But everything seemed to iron out smoothly. My roommates are pretty amazing. They are such Godly girls! I am so blessed. Our apartment is really nice. We have two bedrooms and two bathrooms. I admit I was a little worried about four girls sharing one bathroom but thank Heaven we have two. My house mates are Sarah Harris, Michelle Marricini and Kristen Smith. Kristen and I share a room. She is so so amazing. We already have a lifetime bond as friends. We joke that we were twins that were separated at birth. HAHA and in our room we have a whiteboard that is dedicated to Cally/Kristen-isms for whenever we say something funny... like last night Kristen was talking about how she was going to finish her homework in the morning. She said "a whole can of worms is gonna be unleashed all over that". We laughed for long time about that mixed metaphor :P
my classes are AMAZING! And by amazing I mean exhausting. I have five classes this term, Christian Evidences with Ed Wharton, Old Testament Message with Bill Tracy, Life of Christ with Pat Shaeffer, New Testament Message with Gibby Gilbert, and Missionary Mindset with AIM director Kris Smith. Each of our teachers are calling us out spiritually and mentally. The homework is life changing and attitude altering. We had our first "Ed Test", as they have been daubed by past AIMers, this week. We were asked to memorise a propositional statement for the class and the two step methodology for proving the proposition verbatim from Ed. Also the names of some Jewish and pagan sources that substantiate historicity of Christ and the Crucifixion. IE Josephus and Pliny the Younger. We had to know dates and reasons( also verbatim) why these sources are important to us as Christians. Even after only two weeks in this class I feel better equipped to practice my Christian apologetics to reason the historic reliability of the Bible. On the first day of class we started out in Gibby Gilbert's class. As we arrived we were given a card with a number on it.Instead of having a normal introduction, he had us stand in two concentric circles and get to know the person across from us. After we had chatted for a while we all sat down and he told us that we were going to play a game called "auction block" he called a number and we were instructed to speak encouraging and uplifting things to the person who was on the "auction block" a few went through the process and then the number 7 was called. No one stood up. Then up on the screen a film started playing. It was Jesus on the "auction block" being whipped beaten and crucified. The first to stand up was Dustin Horn, a young man from here in TX. We all followed suite and with tears in our eyes we praised and lifted up our Lord. It was an emotional beginning to our time together but I felt as if I had truly worshiped God for the first time.
this is just a taste of the things that We have been experiencing in our classes. In Bill Tracy's class our first test was a spelling bee on the Old Testament books. If you think that sounds easy, I challenge you to get out a sheet of paper and try. You will be astonished how many you thought you knew how to spell but didn't. In Kris Smith's class we are learning about how our attitudes can affect our message. I thought that I had a pretty good grasp on this but I was astonished to hear his story about Eastern Europe and how the AIMers there had to live with and minister to people in filth, disease, and poverty. In Pat Sheaffer's class I got to see Jesus born. Pat is going through Luke with us. The way that Pat presents the gospel is so real and emotional that it feels as if you could reach out and touch Jesus. Which is exactly what we should be able to do. We rediscovered the miracle of John's conception and the real tough faith of his parents.We saw the beauty, grace and Godly submission of Mary as she gave up her dreams to do her Father's will and how she treasured all those things in her heart. We traveled with Mary and Joseph up to Bethlehem and struggled along the road with them. We saw His birth and how absolutely divinely human it was. We were reminded not to miss the fact that Jesus had a bellybutton and that when he was born he didn't pop out with a little halo on his head preaching and healing people, but he was a baby, a crying, poopy, beautiful baby. And that is the beauty of it because he was fully human and yet he was fully God at the same time.
At the beginning of our classes one of the teachers refered to what we would be experiencing in AIM as "trying to drink out of a fire hydrant". I think that this is the best way to explain how I feel at the moment. My prayer is to be a sponge. I want to just soak up the knowledge that is raining down from these spiritual giants.
So when I arrived I was pretty nervous. But everything seemed to iron out smoothly. My roommates are pretty amazing. They are such Godly girls! I am so blessed. Our apartment is really nice. We have two bedrooms and two bathrooms. I admit I was a little worried about four girls sharing one bathroom but thank Heaven we have two. My house mates are Sarah Harris, Michelle Marricini and Kristen Smith. Kristen and I share a room. She is so so amazing. We already have a lifetime bond as friends. We joke that we were twins that were separated at birth. HAHA and in our room we have a whiteboard that is dedicated to Cally/Kristen-isms for whenever we say something funny... like last night Kristen was talking about how she was going to finish her homework in the morning. She said "a whole can of worms is gonna be unleashed all over that". We laughed for long time about that mixed metaphor :P
my classes are AMAZING! And by amazing I mean exhausting. I have five classes this term, Christian Evidences with Ed Wharton, Old Testament Message with Bill Tracy, Life of Christ with Pat Shaeffer, New Testament Message with Gibby Gilbert, and Missionary Mindset with AIM director Kris Smith. Each of our teachers are calling us out spiritually and mentally. The homework is life changing and attitude altering. We had our first "Ed Test", as they have been daubed by past AIMers, this week. We were asked to memorise a propositional statement for the class and the two step methodology for proving the proposition verbatim from Ed. Also the names of some Jewish and pagan sources that substantiate historicity of Christ and the Crucifixion. IE Josephus and Pliny the Younger. We had to know dates and reasons( also verbatim) why these sources are important to us as Christians. Even after only two weeks in this class I feel better equipped to practice my Christian apologetics to reason the historic reliability of the Bible. On the first day of class we started out in Gibby Gilbert's class. As we arrived we were given a card with a number on it.Instead of having a normal introduction, he had us stand in two concentric circles and get to know the person across from us. After we had chatted for a while we all sat down and he told us that we were going to play a game called "auction block" he called a number and we were instructed to speak encouraging and uplifting things to the person who was on the "auction block" a few went through the process and then the number 7 was called. No one stood up. Then up on the screen a film started playing. It was Jesus on the "auction block" being whipped beaten and crucified. The first to stand up was Dustin Horn, a young man from here in TX. We all followed suite and with tears in our eyes we praised and lifted up our Lord. It was an emotional beginning to our time together but I felt as if I had truly worshiped God for the first time.
this is just a taste of the things that We have been experiencing in our classes. In Bill Tracy's class our first test was a spelling bee on the Old Testament books. If you think that sounds easy, I challenge you to get out a sheet of paper and try. You will be astonished how many you thought you knew how to spell but didn't. In Kris Smith's class we are learning about how our attitudes can affect our message. I thought that I had a pretty good grasp on this but I was astonished to hear his story about Eastern Europe and how the AIMers there had to live with and minister to people in filth, disease, and poverty. In Pat Sheaffer's class I got to see Jesus born. Pat is going through Luke with us. The way that Pat presents the gospel is so real and emotional that it feels as if you could reach out and touch Jesus. Which is exactly what we should be able to do. We rediscovered the miracle of John's conception and the real tough faith of his parents.We saw the beauty, grace and Godly submission of Mary as she gave up her dreams to do her Father's will and how she treasured all those things in her heart. We traveled with Mary and Joseph up to Bethlehem and struggled along the road with them. We saw His birth and how absolutely divinely human it was. We were reminded not to miss the fact that Jesus had a bellybutton and that when he was born he didn't pop out with a little halo on his head preaching and healing people, but he was a baby, a crying, poopy, beautiful baby. And that is the beauty of it because he was fully human and yet he was fully God at the same time.
At the beginning of our classes one of the teachers refered to what we would be experiencing in AIM as "trying to drink out of a fire hydrant". I think that this is the best way to explain how I feel at the moment. My prayer is to be a sponge. I want to just soak up the knowledge that is raining down from these spiritual giants.
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
How I Decided To Go To AIM
Hello there everybody! This is really exciting! Right now I am in New Mexico with my mom and my older sister. They are helping me get all ready for my move. I just wanted to give you a little background on this last year of my life.
This year has been a big one for me. In May of '08 I moved out of my parent's house and into my older sister Casey's in NM. I spent the summer being a nanny to my little niece Cadence. the summer really helped me to transition to living on my own. In august I moved to Montana State University in Bozeman MT. I made some awesome friends there. Among them, Jacob Dorton and Christopher Ketchem. Jake and Chris were constantly talking about their experiences in the Adventures In Missions program in Texas. It seamed to me that the experience was life changing for them but at that point missions was the farthest thing from my mind. My first semester was a little rocky, as is to be expected, but I was supported by the wonderful campus group from the Bozeman Church of Christ. I was working my way through some core classes and I had decided that I was going to declare a major in photography the next year. However, God had other plans. Although I had basically decided on photography I was still struggling with the question of what I needed to do with my life and what impact that I was to have on the world for Jesus. One night in particular, at the beginning of my second semester, I was in the laundry room in my dorm. I was just having some quiet time and I remember asking God to show me His plans for me and help me to trust Him to carry them through. I don't know what prompted me to but I typed "AIM" into google. As I read through the web cite, the questions that I had been asking God were answered almost word for word. I emailed AIM and asked them to send me an application. And so began my journey.
For the next week I prayed about what I needed to do. I shared my dilemma with Jake and Chris, and they were both ecstatic that I was considering AIM. One night after small group Bible study, Jake and his wife Stephanie took me out to coffee to talk about AIM. When we got our coffee and sat down Jake looked at me and said " You are gonna do it aren't you?" and right then I knew that it was what I needed to do. That night Jake drove me to my parents house to tell them my decision. Ever since then the pieces have all fallen together to get me here. The most amazing thing was the money. I was really worried about raising my support. I sent out about a hundred letters to friends and family but in the middle of July I had only heard back from a few people and I didn't have nearly enough support. I just decided that I needed to let it go and let God provide. The next Sunday was pledge Sunday at my home church in Livingston. My church is relatively small, we usually have about 70 regular attendees on Sundays. On pledge Sunday my tiny little church raised almost ALL of the monthly support that I need while I am in Texas! What a blessing! The Lord has a way of humbling us to the point that all we can do is trust Him and then He fills our cup, pressed down an shaken together, overflowing with Joy.
I am beyond excited to embark on this adventure! I hope that I can be a blessing to others while I stretch and grow in the glory of His grace!
This year has been a big one for me. In May of '08 I moved out of my parent's house and into my older sister Casey's in NM. I spent the summer being a nanny to my little niece Cadence. the summer really helped me to transition to living on my own. In august I moved to Montana State University in Bozeman MT. I made some awesome friends there. Among them, Jacob Dorton and Christopher Ketchem. Jake and Chris were constantly talking about their experiences in the Adventures In Missions program in Texas. It seamed to me that the experience was life changing for them but at that point missions was the farthest thing from my mind. My first semester was a little rocky, as is to be expected, but I was supported by the wonderful campus group from the Bozeman Church of Christ. I was working my way through some core classes and I had decided that I was going to declare a major in photography the next year. However, God had other plans. Although I had basically decided on photography I was still struggling with the question of what I needed to do with my life and what impact that I was to have on the world for Jesus. One night in particular, at the beginning of my second semester, I was in the laundry room in my dorm. I was just having some quiet time and I remember asking God to show me His plans for me and help me to trust Him to carry them through. I don't know what prompted me to but I typed "AIM" into google. As I read through the web cite, the questions that I had been asking God were answered almost word for word. I emailed AIM and asked them to send me an application. And so began my journey.
For the next week I prayed about what I needed to do. I shared my dilemma with Jake and Chris, and they were both ecstatic that I was considering AIM. One night after small group Bible study, Jake and his wife Stephanie took me out to coffee to talk about AIM. When we got our coffee and sat down Jake looked at me and said " You are gonna do it aren't you?" and right then I knew that it was what I needed to do. That night Jake drove me to my parents house to tell them my decision. Ever since then the pieces have all fallen together to get me here. The most amazing thing was the money. I was really worried about raising my support. I sent out about a hundred letters to friends and family but in the middle of July I had only heard back from a few people and I didn't have nearly enough support. I just decided that I needed to let it go and let God provide. The next Sunday was pledge Sunday at my home church in Livingston. My church is relatively small, we usually have about 70 regular attendees on Sundays. On pledge Sunday my tiny little church raised almost ALL of the monthly support that I need while I am in Texas! What a blessing! The Lord has a way of humbling us to the point that all we can do is trust Him and then He fills our cup, pressed down an shaken together, overflowing with Joy.
I am beyond excited to embark on this adventure! I hope that I can be a blessing to others while I stretch and grow in the glory of His grace!
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