The Times They are a-changin'.....

"Come writers and critics
Who prophesize with your pen
And keep your eyes wide
The chance won't come again
And don't speak too soon
For the wheel's still in spin
And there's no tellin' who
That it's namin'
For the loser now
Will be later to win
For the times they are a-changin'."

Thank you Mr. Dylan, for your words that constantly inspire me especially when I'm exhausted and school has sucked the life from me, when I think that there is no creativity left in me and all I want to do is run through those doors and take off for somewhere anywhere where I can be free to write and dance and sing. I look forward to the world known as summer, where there are no more exams, or papers, or busy work, where real learning begins: poems are read, songs are written, books are devoured, God and philosophy is discussed between beach-ridden companions, love is experienced, and of course LIFE. But until those moments of golden bliss, I shall remain here. Dwelling amongst these four beige walls consumed by the rigid educational system....so thank you Mr. Dylan, and keep it up.

You were made for someone greater....so follow Me

It's only been a few days since I last wrote, but I'm sitting here in the J-lab at 3 in the morning, where I've been around this time every night for the past week, just doing homework and I felt compelled to write. It's Finals week at school and life seems so stressful and nothing seems to be put in perspective and I feel really out of touch with reality. I've been sleeping in the j-lab on certain nights, getting by on limited amounts of sleep and relying on amazing friends like Christine to bring me snacks and caffeine when my body just can't handle it anymore. But tonight was different. But I shall start at the beginning of this interestingly, eventful weekend:



Friday was stressful because I literally had to work all day and then I went straight from work to a show that I played at to help out a friend, which was a really cool, extremely humbling experience. I so enjoyed playing with other people and being in a different environment. Then after that I had some interesting experiences that don't need to be explained but simply stated that God used those experiences to teach me many things about myself, and more importantly about Him.



Then today I FINALLY got sleep, I slept more than 4 hours last night. woot! but I had the most wonderfully amazing surprise today. One of my best friends made a surprise visit to come all the way from Blacksburg to see me. It was so good to just be around someone who knows me that well and to have God use him to speak such truth to me. I needed to here that wisdom that comes from someone who is so desperately seeking the Lord. It was such a fun night that God annointed with joy, love, and pursuance of Him. Then somehow I ended up in here with Christine (who once again provided snacks) and she played this song for me. It's called "Arms wide open" by Misty Edwards and it was exactly what I needed to hear. Christine just turned up the volume and I lay on the floor and just soaked. After a stressful somewhat eventful night, it was perfect to lay and listen to my daddy's voice. This won't make sense to most of you but maybe it will encourage you in some way. (All in my mind of course) But I felt Jesus touch my face and say "I'm not angry with you" and He smiled, held me and began to stroke my hair and as Jesus always knows what I need, it was perfect. Right on cue. I began to cry, a comfort cry, a relief cry. To experience Him in a moment of exhaustion makes the pain of it all, so worth it. So be blessed friends and soak in Him, tonight or in the morning and just listen. Hear Him and begin to feel yourself relax and bask with arms wide open, in who He is. I love you all, goodnight!

"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me." 2 Corinthians 12:9

Prayer Requests:

*My physical health

*Finals

*RUSSIA

Love,

WARNING: Longest Post in History!!!!

Okay, are you guys ready for this??? I haven't posted in what? A MONTH??? Apparently that is like an eternity in blog years. I am an epic fail as a Journalism student, because this kind of stuff is supposed to be our life! I'm not even sure I'll be able to update you all in just one post but here goes....

(Picture of David and I from the show)

I left you in suspense by telling you about the show and how we were using that to raise money for Russia. The show has passed and we raised $125 which doesn't seem like a lot but from a bunch of college students that's a fortune so thank you everyone for being so generous! A BIG thank you to David for playing with me so wonderfully, and to the lovely Danielle (and all her roomies) for letting us use their house (and also for just being amazing!), and thank you to EVERY SINGLE PERSON that came out! What has happened since? Well as far as music goes I played at school a few times since the Norfolk show, I wrote the music for my fabulous friend Caitlins' Documentary, we recorded that recently. (Dear Caitlin, I hope you do not get sick of my voice after listening to it for countless hours while editing.) And I'm looking forward to doing more shows to raise money! YAY! :)

So that's that. I'm still working the job at the mall, which is great, exhuasting but great. It's pretty cool to think that my job is ministry. A lot of people dream about doing that and I get to everyday(well not literally everyday). It is getting difficult with finals approaching and the craziness of summer but I'll manage, well more like Jesus will manage and I'll do my best to listen to His calming voice as I panic.

Switching gears (these next few updates are probably going to be super random, so pardon me)....My best friend Tara is approaching her due date of her second little girl, which is very exciting. I shall be an "auntie" a second time over and I can't wait...I LOVE babies!!! (Oh and be praying for Tara, for a save and quick delivery and a healthy baby girl) On another note almost all of my favorite people in the whole world (my Journalism peeps) are graduating in 2 very short weeks and LEAVING me to go off and have crazy adventures while I stay here...to continue school. womp. So this is my last chance to say this: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE don't leave me :( What will I do without our cook-outs where we don't actually cook out, or grilled pears, or late night Sandlot? *sigh* I shall miss you all more than you know....

Okay, moving on to what you all have been waiting for RUSSIA UPDATE! WOot!

Shew, where to start? So the last thing I really mentioned was basically that I was looking for a group or organization to hook up with. Well I kept praying and God wasn't opening any doors and I was feeling very let-down. I kept asking the Lord, "Why did you put this country on my heart with no intention of sending me there?" I was rethinking what I heard, second guessing everything, and basically at a point where I wanted nothing more than to give up. So what else could I do but Pray? So one night I'm sitting on campus praying, asking the Lord to reveal something, a group, a missions, something. And He simply said, "there is nothing for me to reveal. I want YOU to GO and do something that isn't being done." WOW! That was such an eye-opener. Instead of feeling like a wanderer lost in the wilderness, I began to feel as if God was slowing cutting back the thicket so I could see where I was walking. And I've been carrying those words with me ever since that night (which was actually only about a week ago hehe) Anyway, so I've been praying and I've decided to stick with August as the date to go. I really believe the Lord wants me in Moscow, where I'll be spending the first few days doing a prayer walk through the city, praying for the country, for individuals, and praying for the government. There has been some upsetting news, two female suicide bombers blew up a subway in Moscoe killing around 2 dozen people. Also, Russian officials threatened to stop adoptions to the U.S. however they are still allowing as of right now. So please be praying about both of those incidents! So yes, the prayer walk, then the remaining time I'll spend volunteering at orphanges, homes for women that have been rescued from Human Trafficking, and doing my best to help the children that are living in the slums get off the streets. The goal is simply to be His hands and feet, to show Christ to the people of this nation in any way I can, and to love on those who don't know that kind of love. I'm currently working on getting my passport, finally! And a very dear precious friend of mine (who coincidentally has a heart for Russia) is praying about going with me on the trip, so please be praying formy friend. OH! And last but certainly not least if this were not enough encouragement, the Lord blessed me with a very special gift. A person, who shall by request remain nameless, felt the Lord told them to give me a financial contribution. I had never met this person previously, so it was definitely God. I'm so so so very honored by this person and their gift and their obedience. It has been so thankfully recieved and of course all glory goes to Jesus. :) But I did want to give them a shout out, because it was sooo encouraging. Especially during a time when I honestly have no idea what I'm doing.

Prayer Requests:

- Tara and her baby

-Russia, as a nation

-My trip

-FINANCES

On a side note, My amazing friend Christian is going to be posting videos from the show on here in the next couple days, so keep an eye for those. I love you all and thank you for the suuport. And please let me know how I can pray for you!

in Him,