Circumstances

One of my classes today about put me over the edge. I sat in my room at the end of the day saying, "God, what are you doing here? and What is the purpose of this frustration?" I was talking out loud in an empty room and I felt silly. As I was going on and on, God began to speak to me. He started reminding me of Moses. I started to remember some of Moses' experiences in the desert with the people and how they were often unruly. The people kept blaming Moses and complaining...ect. God reminded me that He gave Moses the strength that he needed to lead God's people through the wilderness and He will give me the strength to teach my students.

After school I went to meet with my mentor and friend, Julia, and God continued to speak into my heart even more. The unit that I'm working through in "Experiencing God" is about how God works in our circumstances. I'll post more on this later-after I finish the unit-but for now, God used the story of Moses in that study to continue encouraging me. The author reminds us that God wanted Pharaoh to resist Moses so the that the people would see and experience God as the all-powerful "I AM." Yes, indeed, God is the all-powerful "I Am" in every circumstance, joyful and difficult.

Elders' Meeting

Tonight I met with the elders from Redoubt North Church about Heart 2 Heart Mentoring and it went great!! God enabled me to communicate clearly the vision He has given me for this program. Honestly, I felt like everything that came from my mouth was well thought out and beneficial..which I can't say all the time.(wish I could) On my way over the meeting I was praying that God use my mouth and words that came out of it to glorify Himself and accurately portray the ministry of Heart 2 Heart Mentoring, He did in awesome ways. I felt a huge confirmation when one of the elders mentioned just that. He said that he was impressed with how well I communicated and explained the program and my heart and passion for it. What an awesome blessing! By God's GRACE I did not stumble over words or ideas, I was able to pull up all the documents that I needed to present the program, the computer battery did not die. Praise the Lord! In two weeks time we will present this opportunity to the church, after that we will present it to the school as soon as possible. Please pray that God continues to bless this and use this program to draw the children at Redoubt North School to Himself. Pray that God continues to impassion my heart for this ministry. Pray that God works in the hearts of the individuals He would like to be the mentors from our church. Pray that God softens the heart of the school principal so that this program will be welcomed warmly. Pray that all those involved continually seek to honor Christ and bring Him glory.

sore fingers-a good thing

I have been wanting to develop my guitar playing for a long time. For some reason, I have always given up. I think that I was afraid of failing and I also wasn't seeing or hearing myself improve. Well, I have been practicing hard out for the past week and I am hearing tons of improvement and I finally feel liked it clicked. I'm actually getting it and I love it. I actually enjoy practicing a couple hours a day when I have that much time. As a result my fingers are killing me! It's a good pain though because it reminds me that I am achieving something and continuing to learn and develop a musical skill. I like that. So between the guitar and the ukulele I have tons of fun playing and enjoying the gift of music. Praise the Lord!

Sunshine

Today I wanted to go to Bethells Beach after church. It was raining when I woke up so I started praying hard as that the Lord would let there be sun after church. I packed up everything I would need for the beach and went off to church. I went to Shore Grace this morning, which was nice of course. I enjoyed seeing friends on the North Shore today. As we were singing this morning, there was a cat that randomly decided to come to church. It walked in the open door and through the people, then it eventually left(or someone helped it leave:).

After church, the sun came out!!! Yay, praise the Lord! So I headed off the beach as planned. It was a great afternoon. I walked up and down the beach a bit getting wet along the way, I probably might as well have gone for a swim, however the waves were huge and the current was very very strong, so I didn't. The sun was shinning beautifully and I just loved it. I had time to journal and read and sing and just live life to the fullest with Jesus. I did say that next time I would have pray that the wind calm down too because it was extremely windy, but that didn't keep me from enjoying the day. Then after I spent some time at Bethells beach, I went over down the road to Bethells Lake. It's a short hike up to the black sand dunes and then over to the lake (takes about 15 min). Going up to Bethells Lake was a special thing for me. This is the place where God let me know that missions in New Zealand was in my future. It was almost strange going back, but it was really good too.

I left to come home about 4:30pm thinking that if I made it home by 5:30, then I could make it to church at Cession by 6pm. Well, let's just say my navigational skills failed on the way home and I spent the better part of two hours driving around lost, trying to figure out how to get home. Good grief. If there is anything that frustrates me more than anything else, it's getting lost for an extended period of time and not being able to figure myself out of being lost. Once I finally gave in and stopped for directions toward the city, I was home within 20 minutes. Grrrr. So today was good and worshipful and humbling.

It's Friday

Week four of T3 is finished. God has given me strength for another week. Praise the Lord! We had a fun night with CIA today, we had 11 kids come. I think this was a good number today but I that Thursdays may have been better for the kids than Fridays, we'll have to wait and see.

After CIA, I took Bethany and Sarah ice-skating, we had a great time. I am now really tired, but that's ok. It was totally worth it. I think the ice rink was different than the ones in the states though, at least something was different, I can't quite put my finger on it, but I had a hard time getting started for some reason. I got it together eventually though because I had to help Bethany quite a bit, she ended up skating a bit by herself (without the wall:) by the end. I was so proud of her. Spontaneous ice-skating is always a great activity! I guess that could be a good challenge for you this weekend. Do something spontaneous next time you find yourself with a couple free hours. It doesn't have to be anything big, just fun and random, enjoy life and live it up.

More Smiles

God is doing some really cool things...

C.I.A. tomorrow is going to be great!
Tonight I met with Peter Benzie about getting a mentoring program started with our church and the local primary school. It's still in the very beginning stages but we have a clear vision of what needs to happen and when and how the program can work. I also feel like this is something that God wants to see happen and I'll tell you more about that and the vision God has given me for this once more is set in place. For right now, I am thrilled! I feel like this is what I'm here for. If teaching allows me to stay and live here so that I can be a part of getting this program up and running, then that's fine. I'm sure you know that I have big dreams for this program but I don't think they're my dreams, I think this really is something that God has put in me and wants to do here in NZ. This is all super exciting. As you pray for me this week, please pray for Heart 2 Heart Mentoring and how God is going to use this to glorify Himself and build his Kingdom.

Matthew 19:14

Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.

This is the Scripture that the Lord has placed on my heart regarding this ministry. The goal is to connect to the heart of these kids to the heart of Jesus.

new format

Well I like the new look of my blog, but I'm still figuring out how this new layout and format works. I'm getting there and I think I've fixed the comment issue and about me section is getting there. I still have this random box for my photo, which I may need to put my photo there at some point and take it off the top..?? just trying get a fresh look for my blog, I like this look and will prob. keep it around for a while.There are still a few things I want to add and change, but it's getting there.

Rest

Last night I went to bed kinda early, well really early for me, I was in bed by 9:00 and asleep by about 9:30! That is just crazy but I needed the sleep. This morning I woke up rested and ready face another day. It was a very good thing that I had a good rest because teaching today took every bit of strength I had. I got home and could have crashed but I kept going, at least a little bit. This week isn't flying by as fast as last week did, but that's ok. I had someone come in this morning to work with me and the ukuleles, that was lots of fun and I'm looking forward to what's going to happen with the uke group. I think this is going to be a highlight of my week as well.

Prayer requests:
-youth group tomorrow
-energy for teaching
-feeling rested and full of strength
-CIA on Friday
-meeting with Peter Benzie on Thursday about formulating a mentoring
program/partnership between our church and the local primary school.
-quality time in the Word
-hearing God's voice and seeing what He's up to around me
-obedience to follow Him

Ranting and Raving

Tonight, I had a meeting with God. It was more like me getting all my frustrations out and God just listening. But it was more than that. He promises that when I seek Him with all of my heart, I will find Him. By seeking I mean demanding that He show up. This might seem incredibly bold but I did this because His word also says that I may approach His throne with boldness.

In a study that I did not too long ago I learned what it means to earnestly seek God. One verse that stood out from this study was Hebrews 11:6 "Without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him."

seek
Greek Strong's Number:1567
Transliteration: ekzeteo
Part of speech: v
1)to seek out, search for
2)to seek out, i.e. investigate, scrutinise
3)to seek for one's self, beg, crave
4)to demand back, require

So tonight I was seeking God to come help me make sense of so many parts of my life that I just don't understand right now. I was demanding that He speak to my heart so that I knew He was with me helping me work through my struggles. Needless to say, God showed up, I knew He would. I still don't understand everything but I know that I am loved and I know that God is lighting the path for me to walk. As I was finishing up my journaling, I felt God telling me to go the the music section at Boarders (I was at a cafe near by). He said there was something there He wanted me to hear. So I went. I didn't know what I was looking for but it didn't take me long to find what God wanted to tell me. As I glanced over the top 10 sellers for the month it was like this CD jumped off the shelf. On the cover is said, Featuring: You Are Loved (Don't Give Up). It was the Josh Groban album: AWAKE. I bought the CD, went home, listened to this song and wept. Like I said, tonight I had a meeting with God. The maker of my heart came to mend it and speak to me in a special way, a way that is personal to who I am and what I needed in that moment.

Beach, Sun, Ice-cream

So let's be honest, how much better can a Sunday afternoon get? I spent this afternoon at mission bay beach with two of my friends, Peter and Sarah. We were going to have a picnic after church, but when we got to the beach, it was raining! So we had our picnic in the car. Then when we finished eating the sun came out again, yay! We walked up and down the beach collecting fun shells, Sarah and I got pretty wet running through the water and just having fun:) We just enjoyed time with friends in the sun, sand, and water. Then we went to find some ice-cream, another favorite! Back to the beach again because the sun was still shinning and it was beautiful. I am so thankful that I live by the sea, I enjoy the water so so much and the beauty of the sea never gets old. I also love spending quality time with people and enjoying God's beautiful creation at the same time. What a great day! Thanks God.

Psalm 103

Praise the Lord, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise His holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul;
and forget not all His benefits-
who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is restored like the eagles.

The Lord works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

He made known His ways to Moses,
His deeds to the people of Israel:
The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
He will not always accuse,
nor will He harbor His anger forever,
He does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is His love for those who fear Him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
As a father has compassion on his children,
so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him;
for He knows how we are formed,
He remembers that we are dust.
As for man, his days are like grass,
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.

But from everlasting to everlasting
the Lord's love is with those who fear Him,
and His righteousness with their children's children-
with those who keep His covenant
and remember to obey His precepts.

The Lord has established His throne in heaven
and His kingdom rules over all.

Praise the Lord, you His angels,
you mighty ones who do His bidding,
who obey His word.
Praise the Lord, all His heavenly hosts,
who His servants who do His will.
Praise the Lord, all His works
everywhere in His dominion.

Praise the Lord, O my soul.

Good nights

Tonight is a good night:) I just finished watching the movie "Dreamer." It's about a girl and a horse...how could I not love that? And with a title like that, let's just say it didn't take me long to decide this was a good movie to watch tonight.
I like horses a lot(like most girls)and I love dreaming big dreams. Right now, my dreams don't center around horses like they used to, but it's still fun to remember those dreams. Have you ever noticed that God transforms our dreams to align with His, when we ask Him to? I would never have thought that I would be here living in New Zealand, teaching music, serving with the church. Especially because ever since I was little I kept telling my parents that I wanted to go to Australia! It's funny how God just tweaked that dream just a little. I had the right hemisphere, but not quite the right country. I wonder what other dreams God is going to tweak and change so that He is best glorified. Honestly, I am challenged by this often. I want my desires to be God's desires therefore I am constantly challenged to lay down my dreams and put them in the hands of the One who first gave them to me. This can be so difficult at times! I wish it wasn't, but there is still a control freak in me somewhere that thinks she can make life make sense. News Flash! Life is not predictable, circumstances in life change, people change, ultimately I cannot control my life. Good News! God is solid. He is who He says He is, He is never changing, He is 100% faithful in all He says and does, His dreams for our lives always come to pass, for those who love Him, and His love never fails.

Oh, did I mention that one of my dreams had been to go bungy jumping? Did that:)

Brave?

Recently people have been telling me that I am brave. Well, I guess that could be true. However, I think I see it as obedience instead of bravery. It wasn't hard for me to move overseas because I knew that's what God wanted me to do. It is difficult to teach in one of Auckland's roughest schools, but God has called me there too. God has provided the courage I need to continue teaching there. I think that when God asks you to do something radical or "crazy" or difficult, He gives you the courage to do it. If I'm brave, cool beans, but it's only because God allows me to be. There are definitely times when I'm scared, but not scared like I don't think God is with me. It's more of a fear of me failing or letting God down. At which times I must remind myself that I am not perfect..duh! I am not infallible! God is, and His grace is sufficient for me! So, bravery or obedience, it is all because God is sovereign and gives me exactly what I need when I need it, so that He will be glorified through me.

Photo Pursuit

We did a photo scavenger hunt tonight with the youth at Redoubt North. I think it went really well, we had lots of fun and got some great pictures. We had the students use Scripture verses and various clues to find specific locations around Manukau. I wasn't sure how many places to put on the list, but I think we could have had a few more. Everyone had about 45 minutes to complete the challenge and most finished rather quickly...like 25 minutes. However, you never know how traffic is going to be, or how people will go through the list (in order or mix it up). So, overall, good times.

The theme for the event was Jeremiah 29:13 "When you seek me, you will find me when you seek with all your heart." Throughout the activity the students were doing everything they could to get fun and creative pictures at the right destinations. The idea is that we have opportunities to seek God every day. The verses I used to help the kids find their destinations were connected to our relationship with God and some ways we can seek Him. It was cool, I hope the kids had as much fun as I did. I know they went away filled up on lollies and sugar! oops:)

One kid

It's Wednesday morning and I'm waiting for my first class to arrive. I just talked to the vice principal for a little while in the tech lab. She asked me if I was happy here at this school. I was honest, I said, "Some days, yes, but honestly I'm struggling. It's very difficult." We kept talking for a while and she shared with me why she is here. She said that people ask her all the time why she is here when she could be teaching at a much better school. She reminded me that these kids need a fair chance at life just like all the rest. These kids don't have the support they need at home. If everyone said, "I just can't teach those kids," who would teach them? Who would show them that life isn't about violence, cheating, stealing, and just getting by. If I can just have an impact on one kid, I guess this is worth it. But I don't want my impact to be limited to showing them the positive way to live, I want at least one student to make a decision to follow Christ. If I can show one student who Jesus is and that He is what life is about, then all the trouble is worth it. I am the Lord's servant and I will serve where He places me. Pray that I will do this with a joyful heart every day!

What do I say?

Today was difficult, frustrating, good, and confusing. Difficult and frustrating because my class in the afternoon totally pressed my patience to the limit. Sometimes I just don't know what to do, I feel stuck, trapped, unable to make a difference or teach. Today was good because I had some extra planning time, which God helped me use wisely to get lots of recording of assessments finished. Also good because I had a meeting with a few other teachers at the school after school and I know that I'm not the only one who struggles with these kids. They don't just challenge me, they challenge everybody. Please don't misunderstand, I do have some great students, they are not all so challenging. It just seems overwhelming when I have many challenging students in the same class. Today was confusing because I am still in this process of figuring out what I am doing with my life. I'm a teacher. I always will be, it's in my blood. Usually it's more in the form on one on one teaching/mentoring that I enjoy the most. I don't know if I will always teach music, but I teach. I also know that my life will always be used for ministry for the kingdom of God. I live for Jesus and desire to point others to Him. So, where does this leave me right now? Living one day at a time, with questions, but still living and following the path the Lord has set before me. There is a Phil Joel song that really speaks to my heart. It's called "God is Watching Over You"

He sees you down by the water line
Know what you're thinking all the time
He sees the rising of the waves
When the tide starts rolling in
He lets you know it's gonna be o.k.

He sees you dancing in the moonlight
His arms around you hold ya tight
And if those clouds should start to break
He'll be standing out in the rain with you
And though it's hard to believe
He believes in you

God is watching over you
As always
You are loved
Whatever you go through
He's right beside you
God is watching over you
As always
And if you think He'll ever leave you
You better think again

Painted in the sky a rainbow to remind you
Nothing that is broken
Cannot be made new
He knows when ya feel so far away
He's gonna keep the night light on
He's waiting there to receive you

You are loved
Wherever you go

Through fire, through wind and through rain
Yesterday, today and tomorrow the same
Nothing here can take this love
Nothing you could do will break this love
Climb a tree, gonna reach so high
Swing low sweet chariot
It's time to fly
He sees you down by the water line

Week Three

Well, it's week three into term three at Tamaki Intermediate. Choir is slowing getting better...one step at a time! Today, was a step in the right direction. Nowhere near where I want the kids to be right now, but headed that way. I just keep praying all day long, that God is glorified in what I say! This can be so hard when kids are so disrespectful. I think I did a good job of that today, I didn't loose my cool at all, in fact I stayed really calm. God is so good. No doubt I was frustrated at times, but God gave me strength, He gave me words, and He gave me the ability to keep going. Praise the Lord! I don't have anything big planned for this week at school, which is nice. Next week I have someone coming in to help me the Ukuleles. I'm going to take a group to a Ukulele festival in November, this is going to be a ton of fun, but also difficult as well. Pray that this whole process goes well. We need to start praying for November now, it is going to be a huge month for me and the preparation that needs to happen before then seems crazy, but with Christ, it can be accomplished. Praise the Lord and thanks for your prayers!

Rangitoto Island

I woke up this morning to a very relaxed schedule, I decided that I really wanted to go to Rangitoto Island,(youngest volcano in Auckland). I've been here three months and still hadn't gotten there, nor had I driven in the city during the day...so today was a day of firsts.

I started out by figuring out a plan of action, how to get to the ferry, what time it left/came back, how much it was going to cost...details. Then I started out for the city. Ha, let say it's a good thing God is always watching over me. The city is full of random one-way streets, I had to be so so careful(I was). Then to find a car park near the ferry depot:) Ok, so I decided that next time I go, I will most likely take the bus or a train. But I survived.

Next, I almost missed the ferry because of having trouble with the car park situation but praise the Lord, the ferry runs a little late and I just made it. Keep in mind, I gave myself plenty of time to make it there, traffic is just crazy, and I didn't know exactly where I was going.

The climb was absolutely wonderful. The landscape was georgous, the weather was perfect and the climb was just the right length and difficulty for a random day trip. As I was climbing up, I kept thinking, "I can't believe I live here!" This was the best thing I could have done today. There is so much more to see there too, I only climbed the summit. Needless to say I will be going back a few more times, I think I'd like to go with some friends next time. Today was a good day to go by myself though. I needed a day away to think and just be me, so it was so good.






There are lava rocks all over the island along with the beautiful bush and Pohutukawa forest. The Pohutukawa tree is called the New Zealand Christmas tree because it blooms red flowers right around Christmas time. The lava looks like rivers of rock all the way down to the sea.







I hope I picked the best pictures to give you a taste of what it was like. It was too beautiful to put into words really and the pictures don't do justice to the actual senery. God's creation always leaves me speechless.

CIA

I think I've posted about CIA before or I've written about it in my e-mails that go out every so often. Just in case you don't know what it is, CIA stands for "Christ In Action" and it is an after school children's' ministry for primary ages kids. We meet every other week. The program includes games, a story, craft, singing, and we end with a small dinner of some type. We have changed the day from Thursday to Friday for this term. We'll see how this works out for the kids. Thursday is bringing on some challenges for some of the leaders, so hopefully Friday will work out. Yesterday it went great. We started out with just a few (like six) but by craft time, we had 10 kids. I was excited to see more kids come, but I think it would be better if all the kids came at the beginning. So we need to pray for that.During the story time yesterday, Peter had an opportunity to tell kids about having a personal relationship or "friendship" with Jesus. Pray that the Spirit works in the lives of the kids who don't already know Jesus and that they soon make a decision to follow Him.

This week I organized the craft. The kids made a WWJD doorknob hanging. The lesson was about fighting temptation, so "what would Jesus do?" is a good question for the kids (or me) to ask. It went really well and the kids had fun. I think one of my favorite parts of the night though was doing the dishes with Gloria. I don't often get a chance to just talk with some of the ladies at church, so we had a wonderful conversation about family while we did the dishes. I was so blessed by hearing about her heart for her family and the traveling they are planning to do with their kids. God is good:)

Parent/teacher interviews

Long day! That's an understatement. Class this morning, choir this morning, then parent/teacher interviews from 2pm to 6:30pm. I saw about 10-12 parents so honestly I sat around board for a really long time. I read parts of "Velvet Elvis" (Rob Bell) again and I also spent some time re-reading my cultural anthropology notes again. I know, I'm a dork, but culture fascinates me:) So I spent some time reminding myself about how culture is structured and different forms of culture. Really, this does help me communicate with my students better and understand their different backgrounds. I think I am going to go to bed early tonight. I'll write more later.

Silly Kid, God's Glory

Today I had a student who thought he was funny...let's be honest, I have kids like that everyday...but God used this one in way he wasn't expecting. Conversation went like this...

Me: This is a crescendo (I drew a picture)
Student A: A Christian? (trying to be funny)
Me: No, I am a Christian, this is a crescendo.
Student B: Yer a Christian?
...mumblings about the class like, "hey arn't you a Christian?"
Me: Yes, I am.
Student B: ok, cool.
Student B to student A: Hey, you a Christian?
Student A: no way man!
Me: Ok, back to the crescendo please.
Student A: a christian. (oh isn't he funny)
Me: No, a Christian is a person who follows Christ! A crescendo is a musical term for starting soft and getting loud.

So, I didn't get to go deep into what it means to be a Christian, but if I keep talking about crescendos maybe this silly kid will keep saying "Christian" and I'll keep explaining more about what it means to be a Christian:) Gotta smile when God uses a silly kid who intends frustrate the teacher as wittiness for Him. This is one of the times when God came in and redeemed a potentially tough situation for His glory.

Smiling

So right now, I am cuddled up in lots of blankets and smiling:) I like blankets, especially when it's cold outside and inside. But I'm not just smiling because I get to be wrapped in blankets, I'm smiling because God has blessed me with another Sunday of hearing His Word preached. I'm smiling because I love being inspired and I love to inspire others. In fact that was one of my reasons for becoming a teacher. Though recently I have been doubting my teaching abilities and wondering how in the world I'm going to get my students to learn, let alone inspire them to love learning. In my own life, I feel most inspired when I'm living with Jesus, knowing that He is at work in and through me...this helps me dream big dreams and set out to do the impossible, because nothing is impossible with Christ! Hence I moved to New Zealand and followed the call the Lord put on my heart to serve Him overseas. This was/is an impossible dream that God made happen. Now that I am here, I am in the process of figuring out just exactly what it is I'm supposed to do here. I've been here for about three months and the desire to get churches connected with schools by sending mentors to encourage and love "at risk" kids is burning on my heart. I have a vision of seeing churches caring for their communities by caring for the education of the children in those communities and at the same time bringing the Love of Jesus into the hearts of these kids and their families. I've approached World Vision with questions about getting Kids Hope started here in NZ, similar to the States and Aussie, however, they are not going to go forward with that right now. So now what? I still feel like this is something God has placed on my heart.

This morning I was reminded that Jesus did not give up on Peter. Peter denied even knowing Jesus and yet Jesus later told him that He was going to use Peter to build His church. Peter was impulsive and spontaneous (i.e. jumping out of a boat), yet Jesus led him, gently corrected and taught him through his actions. Trust Jesus, don't doubt, and you might just end up walking on water. Impossible for most, but with God, all things are possible. So, starting a church/school mentoring program to bring Jesus into our communities...difficult, yes!, but impossible? No way! Nothing is impossible with God!

This evening God spoke to my heart with the same Scripture that He used to bring me to New Zealand, Isaiah's Commissioning, Isaiah 6:1-8. Isaiah realized that God put a calling on his life to prophesy to the nations, Isaiah realized He was sinful and unworthy to be used by God, then Isaiah realized that God was willing to cleanse him and was prepared to speak through him. Finally, Isaiah says ok, here I am, I'll go for you, I am yours. I am going to be diving more into the meaning behind the word "calling" in the next few weeks. I am confident that the Lord has given me a passion to point people to Him, to inspire others to know Him, to help people know Him, to encourage those who are currently walking with Jesus to grow and deepen that relationship. I hear Jesus saying, "Bring the little children unto me."

Right now, how am I going to see teaching music as more than a task? That is going to be difficult, I need to be intentionally thinking about how I respond to my students and what I say. I pray that even though I find myself in some pretty hard situations that God steps in and redeems those situations for His glory. Pray with me about bringing the children to Jesus. Pray that God shows me where to start. Pray that God continues to fill me with passion to serve Him one day at a time in all circumstances. I pray that I can continue smiling with the joy that God has put in me so my students see Jesus drawing them to Himself.

Opposite Days

The past two days could not have been more different! (at school that is). Yesterday I had a class that was absolutely awful. The kids were so rude, at one point, I just didn't know what to do with them. It's not even that many kids compared to our American classes, this class was only about 17 or 18 kids but most of them were just utterly disrespectful to me and each other. I had one table of girls who were quiet and minded their own business and followed instructions. I felt bad that they had to put up with the silliness of their classmates. Today on the other hand I had a delightful class. The class I had this morning made my entire week. After we had finished with some notes and basic stuff to prepare them for the rest of the unit, they asked if they could sing for me! Far be it from to to say no if my students want to sing! So I said, "Yes, by all means, I'd love that!" They sang wonderfully, it was so great. Then they asked if I would sing for them, this made me really nervous, but I did it. I sang Amazing Grace for them and they were so sweet and polite when I finished. I can't tell you how blessed I felt after having such a sweet class today! Yesterday, I pretty much vented everything that was in me in prayer and felt utterly defeated. Today, God heard my prayer and blessed me with a day/class that encouraged me exactly the way that I needed to be encouraged. Praise be to God!

I Couldn't Resist

I was looking through my pictures tonight..trying to organize them haha..anyway, I came across this one and new it was priceless. Nigel that is some intense hair! My other dear friends in this photo are Douglas, Steph and Lynda. Steph traveled to NZ with the team and Douglas and Lynda go to Redoubt North. Anyway just a fun pic post.

Finishing up...

On Sunday after church I spent a little extra time in the children's' ministry center. When IWU came two years ago we spend a good chunk of time at Redoubt North digging ditches and painting. Well, the painting never quite got finished. So I am working on that and loving it. Sunday I just did some trim work, touching up the walls where they meet the ceiling. Next week I hope to put another coat of paint on the ceiling as well, I may need to recruit some help for that one:) Anyway, good times!

Totally unrelated, I started school up again today. Jeepers, I know I can do this but I just need some extra strength and endurance from the Lord. I think I also need some fresh ideas for what to teach. I don't have a curriculum per say like we do in the states for music. I still have standards, but have to make up whatever I want to teach. This is ok, but I'd like to use some material that is published and made for middle school students as well. Just keep those prayers coming! I know I only get through one day at a time on God's grace.

Trust

Yesterday I did a ton of processing! I woke up and it was like I had a million things on my mind all at once. It was funny really, I didn't know I could think about so much at once...haha. I started asking questions like no body's business(that wont surprise those of you who know me well:). I was thinking about what I'm doing here in NZ, if I am supposed to continue teaching next year, if it would be possible to work for World Vision, where is God at work here?, what does it look like for me to join God in His work?, what does it look like for me to be obedient to a call of full-time ministry when I don't feel called to be a pastor myself(at least I don't think so)? These are just a few of the questions I've been processing. Throughout the day, I felt like God was using Scripture to speak right to my heart and He was telling me to TRUST. This sounds so simple doesn't it? If anybody is worthy of trust it is the triune God! In the morning a friend of mine sent me a text saying, "This is the Scripture the Lord gave me for you, Hebrews 2:13 'I will put My trust in God.'" I was blown away, she had no idea what I was thinking/going through at that time! God is Good!

Another thing God told me was that I have to pray for Him to open my eyes Spiritually so that I can see where He is at work. Please pray for this with me! My eyes are open to see the Truth in the Gospel and my ears are open to the voice of God but for some reason I finding it hard to see where God is at work around me. Pray that God opens my eyes and shows me where to join Him in His work here, be it at school, church, community, wherever. Pray that the Lord makes me sensitive to the working of the Holy Spirit and the wisdom to know when I should speak and/or act according to the Spirit's leading.

Gifts

Family/friends/relationships.
Home/food/transportation.
Pictures/memories.
Sunsets/sunrise.
Life.
A job.
Christ’s life/death.
The Word.
Grace.
Music.
Education.

People exchange gifts for many reasons, to show love, to celebrate, to appreciate, to encourage, the list could go on. Parents give countless gifts to their children over a lifetime and vise verse hopefully. In my own life, I have been very blessed by the gifts of my parents. My mom insisted that my brother and I have a Christian education so she worked hard to make that happen. My parents then supported my decision to attend a Christian university; they supported me financially and in prayer. Now, I am a long way from “home” using the education I was given in order to glorify my heavenly Father. I am still supported everyday by family, friends, and body of Christ. All of this being said; I know that everything mentioned above is ultimately a gift from God, given to me in order to further His Kingdom. Our heavenly Father knows exactly what we need and He also desires to give us good gifts. His gifts are so perfect and perfectly timed that He doesn’t always give us what we think we want, He know us better than we know ourselves. He knows what will encourage, help, bless, and harm His children.

Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? If you, then through you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will our Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him? So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:9-12

Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. James 1:16-18

To all those that the Father is using to bless my life, thank you. Thank you for your prayers, generosity and time.

God is watching over me!

This week NZ has been hit with some pretty bad storms...lots of rain, strong winds, and some tornadoes even! That being said, the only thing that is a miss for Ferne and I is our internet connection! No damage to the house, cars, or ourselves! In fact, God must have put His angels around us and the area where we live. What's more is one of the places that was hit the hardest is in the Northland, the town of Kaitia. For those of you who remember, this was the place where I about moved to! I thought I had a job at a small Christian school up there and was all ready to take it and move to the northern tip of NZ. However, God had other plans. That job did not go through, I got a job in Auckland and moved here instead. God is watching over me! Had I been living in Kaitia, who knows where I'd be living now.

Thankful Saturday

Today I am thankful for...

planning youth activities for next term
going to Rainbow's End with Bethany and family time
time with my friend Sarina, seeing her school/art...
going to the Zoo with Julia H. and Nathanael
just enough sunshine to go for a walk/jog at the right time
lunch with Julia E.
reading with no worry about the time
rainy day to relax, rest, and then see a movie with Ferne
a car that will be a blessing for me and the friend I'm buying it from
learning more about the ministry that is happening at Cession Community
spending time seeking out where God is at work
praying boldly and knowing that God hears/answers each prayer
blankets:)
grace

Obedience

This week in the study, "Experiencing God" I am looking at John 14:21 "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him."

There is so much packed in this passage. It's not just whoever has my commands loves me, it's whoever has my commands AND and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. So I can show that I love Christ by being obediant to Him. This is what I have been striving to do and what I continue doing each day within God's grace. I have found though that when I do obey the commands of Christ to show my love for Him, I sometimes become prideful. I begin to think that I'm loving Christ in obediance in my own power. I couldn't be more WRONG!! I can only live in a love relationship with Christ through obediance because He enables me to. I can only obey because of the courage, strength, and miracles that He provides. Christ enables me to live in obediace by grace that was and is given because of His blood that was shed to cover my sin and incompatance.

He who loves me will also be loved by the Father...through Christ's blood I am able to approach the Father with confidence (Heb. 4:16) because that blood covers my sin. When I am living in a love relationship with the Son, the Father's love also overflows.

...and I too will love Him and show myself to Him. Jesus also loves me when I obey Him and He will continue to reveal Himself to me. Thus the love relationship continues through Jesus' initiative. It is the Father that draws us to Jesus in the first place (John 6:44), and Christ who sustains that relationship by revealing His commands through the Sciptures and through His Holy Spirit (John 14:26). It is Christ who gives me the opportunity to be obediant, Christ who enables me to be obediant, and Christ who blesses that obediance. It's all about Christ, not about me!

If there is any truth in what is written above, it is found in Scripture, not my own wisdom. If God is challenging you in obedience or living in a love relationship with Him, look to Scripture. Pray, ask Him to reveal his commands to you and give you the courage and ability to obey.

Continue Prayer

So I guess I do have a serious side to post on tonight...prayer! The power of prayer has been so evident in every part of my life and living it to glorify the Lord. The Lord has answered countless prayers that you lift up for me and the that I lift up for those around me, Praise the Lord. I guess, the reason I am writing about this is because of the times when I feel that God uses me to pray the most sincerest prayers. Believe it or not, it's in the middle of the night. I think that is for a couple of reasons. First, because that is the same time when so many of you are praying for me, so sometimes God wakes me up to pray for the same things along with you. Which is absolutely awesome!! but just means I'm tired the next day. Also, I think God has been waking me up in the middle of the night to pray because that is when my heart is totally in sync with the Spirit. Sometimes, I feel more analytical or practical about what I pray during the day, but when I'm too tired to analyze(or get in the way), God can use me to pray bold prayers, believing Him to answer them. Understand that I am still processing some of this, but so amazed to see that Holy Spirit is at work, I love it. Keep praying! If it means I don't get a ton of sleep, then just pray that I am rested and not cranky for the sake of those around me:)

Just to say...

Well, I don't have anything super profound to post on tonight but I thought I would just give you a light into my holiday thus far. Saturday...Amazing(see previous post) Sunday, great to be at Redoubt North, really powerful time of worship. Bethany came over and we painted, then I took her to Cession Community for an evening service. Monday, Redoubt youth planning mtg. in the arvo, rock climing with wesleyan youth in the evening. Tuesday, tasky but productive morning, hung out with some great friends. God is so good and is enabling me to build deep and meaningful friendships. I went to see some artwork of my friend Sarina, which was such a blessing. In the evening I had study with the Redoubt North gang, which went so well, Praise the Lord! Wednesday,I took Bethany to Rainbows End (NZ theme park, not as flash as the ones in the states) had fun with that, got rained on a lot...haha. Small group mtg. looking at the ministry that is happening at Cession Community in the evening. So there ya have it, in a nutshell. I'll try to stay up to date.

Love

Three things will last forever-faith, hope, and love-and the greatest of these is love. I Corinthians 13:13 NLT

How do explain my day today. Well,mostly I read, studied, prayed, sought, and loved Jesus because He first loved me. I am ashamed to say that I don't spend more days the way I did today, completely in Love with and loved by my Lord. I could share so many ways God's love has been shown to be practical in my life (just see yesterday's post) But there is so much more to it. Being loved by Jesus is spoken into my heart with the voice of God through Scripture, prayer, and fellow believers. Today the Lord used Scripture and prayer to speak to my heart. In love, I was chided and told to stop being selfish but rather to focus on Him. In love, I was cherished, the Father reminded me that I am His daughter, His dearly loved child, whom He is molding and growing to be like Him. In love, I was challenged to submit to God's purposes and plans for my life (again:) In love, God revealed His power to me through His Holy Scriptures that tell of the miracles He did through His Son, Jesus Christ. In love, I was told to have greater faith, to believe God and trust Him with my entire being. In love, God met me where I was/am, sinful, broken, human, unworthy, but because of Jesus' blood, God allowed me to enter His throne room. In love, the Father reminded me that the greatest command is to love Him with all of my heart, soul, and mind. Today, I'm left singing, "How Great Is Our God," yet knowing that I can't even begin to tell of how great He truly is.

Dear Friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. I John 4:7-8 NLT

Live in Faith...
Live in Hope...
Live in Love...
Live in Christ.

Thankful Friday

Praise the Lord! I made it through today, now I have some Holiday, Yay!!!!! Today, was such a great day. Class wise, ok, but everything else was great! Tonight I am thankful for:

Holiday Time

Friendships that are growing with the grace of God

Time to write encouragement cards

Getting a flat tire at church where there were people to teach me how to change it, rather than getting a flat tire in the dark on the side of the road somewhere.

Having a dead battery in my car while at home, so that I could jump it with Ferne, again, it could have happened anywhere, but the Lord was watching over me.

Going out for dinner with Ferne on Thursday night

A new book to read over the holiday

E-mails from friends and family at home that encourage me and remind me of all the people praying for me. Praise the Lord!

Youth Group at Shore Grace tonight

Knowing that I am going to sleep past 7am in the morning!

Life with Jesus every day!

The beauty, love, joy, and peace that comes from knowing Christ died for my sake, so that I may live with Him in glory someday.

Studying God's Word.

God's perfect timing for all circumstances in my life.

I could go on and on tonight, but I think I'll stop there for now and go do some reading, then I'm going to bed for an incredible sleep. Thank you all for your prayers!

Made it through Wednesday!

I made it through today! Praise the Lord. We had a large rehearsal at school today with like six other schools. This morning I was distracted and I didn't know how I was going to get through my morning classes until God took care of that for me. My outside school didn't come today! That totally made my day. I had the morning to prepare myself (mentally) for the afternoon, and also do some picking up and organizing my classroom. Ahh, I can't tell you how much of a blessing that was. The rehearsal went ok, but I was not pleased with the performance of most of my students. Some of them did a very nice job and I told them so, but many slacked off and were too comfortable in our school. I like having these big rehearsals at other schools so that my kids don't know anybody nor do they know the building. It keeps them on their toes and more dependent on me to give them directions. Well, I have two days left until holiday. I can do it! (with Jesus' help:)

So far today...

I sang with the Pmwambwa Singers at Titirangi Baptist Church. It went really well and I enjoy singing with this group so much. It is such a blessing to sing such wonderful music and glorify the Lord with this gift of music. Being part of this choir was a huge answer to prayer for me as I came to New Zealand. I prayed that God would let me use my love for singing for ministry and to glorify Him. This choir has helped that happen. Praise the Lord! Though this choir is a wonderful way to use the gift of singing for the Lord, it means that I miss some services at Redoubt North. I love worshiping with the Redoubt family as well. However, I think that its ok for me to sacrifice that in order to participate in the ministry of this choir. I'm pretty sure the rest of our performances wont conflict with Redoubt services, so that is great.

After the service, I went to the Titirangi village market. It was so neat, it's kinda like art in the park, but smaller and more variety. I went with another member of the choir and Sri Lankan friend, Heranti. We had so much fun checking out each tent of unique art and jewelry. We also had a light lunch at a little cafe..mmm it was nice. While we were enjoying lunch, a choir came out to sing and I was really excited to hear them. The first song they sang was a song that I was familiar with and have sung in the past. The second song was introduced as an arrangement of the 23 Psalm and I thought, "O good, this should be nice." But then they started to sing and they used she as the pronoun to discribe God instead of He!!! At first I thought, no, I just heard them wrong, but then it continued!! I wanted to take out my Bible right there and read the proper 23rd Psalm so people could hear the true Word! I looked at Heranti and we thought it was a good time to leave, so we did. After we left, Heranti told me that many of those people were Spiritualist, Yikes! It was a huge eye-opener for me to see just how far Satan goes to decieve people and lead them away from the truth.

Tonight I'm going to go to Cession Community Church again and this afternoon I am going to rest. Praise the Lord for this wonderful day of rest and worship.

Thoughts in a day

I was up bright and early this morning opening my windows to blue skies and sunshine, it was so lovely that I left my coat hanging on the door, not a great idea. During my first class of the day the rain started pouring so hard, it was crazy! Then it started to hail, I was thinking good grief, I have lunch and after school duty, this is not cool! Then the sun came out again, then more rain, then more sun! It was a ridiculous day weather-wise.

Well, I wouldn't say that I'm homesick but I would say that I miss my deep relationships on the home front. Tonight I talked to one of my really good friends back in the states for at least an hour. It felt so good to talk to someone who knows me so well. I have some great friends here in NZ and the Lord has truly blessed my relationships here in wonderful ways but building deep relationships takes time. I value relationship and quality time with others so that part of life here is going to take some time. That's OK.

This afternoon I was catching up on a couple e-mails that I wanted to get sent out and I was challenged in sharing a few bold prayer requests with specific individuals. After I sent out these e-mails, I had to go outside for after school duty (making sure the kids get on their way home) and there was an absolutely beautiful double rainbow across the sky. It was the boldest rainbow I have ever seen. I felt so blessed. Praise the Lord!

Most urgent prayer needs:

New flatmate for a month who doesn't know Jesus!
Last week of school before two weeks of holiday.
So many students who don't know the real Jesus, they are deceived by Mormonism.
How to use the time God has given me.
Where is God working around me, so that I can join Him in what He is doing?
Every part of my life being lived out to glorify God and grow His kingdom.
Me seeking God with all of my heart everyday.

Thank you for your prayers!

what can I say in six minutes...

well..this morning the sunrise was super! the whole sky was full of many shades of pink and red..."pink in the morning, sailors take warning" now it's raining.

I feel like a safe driver, I don't worry about what side of the road I'm on or what way to turn. I'm learning my way around the city much better too, not perfect but improving.

It's wednesday and I have two days left this week, then one more week, then I have holiday for two weeks!! yay!. I need a holiday! I've been teaching since last August when school started and we don't have summer break over here. We have Four terms a year with different amounts of holiday time between each one. Needless to say, I ready for two weeks!

Umm...let's see what else oh yeah, I bought a small heater for my room the other day and now I can heat it up in no time, so I'm not freezing my bum off all the time.

Well that's six minutes so I've gotta go, have a great day!

Hola amigos i familia

Hello friends and family,

I went to a great ladies night out last night with a totally fun Mexican theme. We enjoyed some Mexican food and music then Julia shared about here experience serving in a Mexican orfanage. This fun night was put together by Michelle Yates from Shore Grace Chruch. We had about 12 to 13 ladies come to this party and it was just a nice time of getting to know other ladies from the church and a few friends that came along too.

My favorite thing about this night is that I was able to bring a non-believer with me! Ferne and I have just had a student come to stay with us for about a month. She is from South Korea and is here studying English. She is 20yrs old and both her parents are Christians but she is not. While we were at the Yates' house their daughter Anna was showing me and Myeung chin some of her birthday gifts. One of them was a devotional journal that had a Bible verse at the top of the page and then some questionas about that verse. As Anna and I were reading the verses and talking about them, Myeung chin was also reading them (whispering out loud) It took everything in me not to start jumping up and down because God was beginning a work in Myeung Chin. God's Word tells us in Isaiah that His Word will not return back to Him void, but will accomplish the purpose for which it was sent.

I know that God had placed this young woman with Ferne and I for a purpose and I pray that we may be His instruments and that she will see God in us. I pray that before she leaves, she knows Jesus as her personal savior and can have a personal relationship with Him. Please Pray!!! with me that God continues to do amazing works to reveal Himself to this young woman. Please pray that I am observant and see what God is doing so that I can join Him and be used by Him to further His Kingdom.

Currently...

I have a new favorite music artist here in NZ, Brooke Fraser. Her music is part of the secular music culture, but she is definitely a Christian and her lyrics are definitely Christian. I was listening to one of her cds today during my quiet time before school. I was studying what it means to be a servant of God and remain in Him.

John 15:5 “I am the vine and you are the branches, those that remain in me and I in them, will bear much fruit, apart from me, you can do nothing. (NLT)

How do I remain in Jesus? Well, I decided it was like knowing Jesus is with me All the Time: when I sleep, when I get ready, when I teach, drive, hang with friends, go to church…you get the picture. I decided that for me to remain in Jesus I had to think about being with Him all the time.

How do I bear fruit? If Jesus is with me all time and I am remaining in Him and He is in me, then naturally He will work in and through me bearing much Spiritual fruit and continuing to grow His Kingdom through me. This gave me tons of encouragement because I realized that it’s not me, it’s all Jesus. I can do nothing apart from Him. I must dwell in Him, know Him, love Him, be molded by Him, be obedient to Him, and then I will begin to see the fruit that He is producing through me. As I was coming to these conclusions at the end of my time, the song HYMN began to play.

HYMN

If to distant lands I scatter,
if I sail to farthest seas,
Would you find and firm and gather ‘till I only dwell in Thee?
If I flee from greenest pastures, would you leave to look for me?
Forfeit glory to come after, ‘till I only dwell in Thee.

If my heart has one ambition, if my soul one goal to seek,
This is my solitary vision ‘till I only dwell in Thee.
That I only dwell in Thee.
That I only dwell in Thee.

Let’s just say, that was pretty sweet!

Before this time of study even began, I felt Jesus with me in the morning. He was preparing my heart for this lesson. It was like He was following me around all morning, through my morning routine, as I drove to school, and then as I opened my Bible and study to intentionally enter His presence. The thing is, I was already with Him and He was with me. I felt this all day. Even now actually, I’m sitting at Starbucks reflecting on my day and I feel like Jesus is sitting across the table. I like it. There is so much more that I learned this morning but I think this is intense enough for now. I hope that you are encouraged by reading this and knowing that God is at work in you as you remain in Him and He in you.

Sunday Sunday

Yesterday was a wonderful Sunday! In the morning, I was back at Redoubt North. I heard a great sermon from the book of Acts and was reminded of the power of the Holy Spirit. I love that book (well the whole BOOK really)! Terry talked about the mission of Paul and Silas and the way the Holy Spirit worked through them. He also reminded me that ministry is always a matter of education, prayer, partnership and guidence. Praise the Lord!

In the evening I went to Shore Grace. I enjoy worshiping at Shore Grace too. I loved the time of singing in the evening, even though I still have that yucky cold. The message was also great. Pastor Mike preached on God's will and being in the center of it. Praying to discern what God is doing in your life and so on...The church is beginning a study called "Experiencing God." Because I won't be able to go to many more services (service time change that conflicts with Redoubt) I will do the study with Julia. I started it last night and it is going to be so good. I'll deffinitely be posting on what I'm learning.

So all in all, praise the Lord for a good weekend and time rest. Praise the Lord for His Word and all that is revealed in it. Praise the Lord for pastors who are willing to teach and be obediant to the task of caring for God's people.

Colds are Yuck!

So I've got my first cold since being in NZ. I don't like it much really. It's an absolutely beautiful day outside and all I feel like doing is sitting and every now and then emptying my nose. Colds are yuck! I thought that maybe if I got ready for the day and made myself feel nice, I would feel better. Umm...nope. I felt light headed from being up and walking around, good grief. I'm not one who likes to sit and stop for any long peroid of time, especially if it's sunny outside. Grrr..well that's how I feel right now. I'll get better, this cold won't last forever, and when I do I'll get up and go for a nice walk, hike, or something outdoors.

Where I Reside

Well I've been meaning to post pictures of the house I'm living in and the car I'm using to get wherever it is I want to go. So now is your lucky day! It's finally happening. I live in the suburb of Meadowbank in Auckland, NZ. NZ does not use zip codes so there are tons of suburbs to identify what area your street/house is in. The car I'm driving is a 19yr. old Merc. It belongs to a couple from church, but they often loan it out to people who need a car, I'm the lucky recepient of that blessing right now. Praise the Lord. I live with a wonderful Sri Lankan woman who is a strong Christian and a huge encouragement. I am so blessed to be taken so well care of. God is Amazing!

WMCNZ Convention

This past weekend was the Queen's Birthday weekend, so we had an extra day off on Monday. It was a great weekend. I went to and participated in the Wesleyan Methodist Church of New Zealand family convention. I participated by running a drama seminar for the youth on Saturday and then putting a drama together for the Saturday night rally. I had so much fun, God did everything really. In my last post you'll notice that God was encouraging me through Hebrews 12:1-2, so I decided to plan the drama to incorporate this verse. On Saturday afternoon, I was walking past the main marquee where the adults were listening to the guest speaker, He was using the same passage! How cool is that?! God is so awesome! The teens did a great job with the drama and I was really proud of them for being so flexible and putting the drama together in such little time.

I loved worshiping with the body of Christ from so many different cultures, it was a such a blessing. That is what I remember most about the last time I was here as well. It reminds me that Scripture says that people from every nation, tribe, and language will praise the name of the Lord.

Another highlight was connecting with friends. I was able to connect with some other young adults and begin some new friendships. A bunch of us went to Huka Falls and Sunday afternoon and saw some beaufiful sights. I was also able to reconnect with people from churches I visited two years ago.

I'm going to try to do a picture post after this one to show you some pics from the weekend. I don't know if I'll be able to write next to them to explain what or who is in them, but I'll do my best.

Thankful Today

Yesterday was a rough day of teaching, but today was much better. At the end of the day yesterday I was left asking why I was a teacher. In the morning, I had a student cuss me out, try to start hitting me, then bolt from class!!! All because I told him he had to finish his power point (I was teaching technology class). Praise the Lord I had an aid in the room that I could send after this student and she found him and helped him get himself under control. Unfortunately, I would have handled the situation with this student much differently had I known how he would respond to me and why he responded the way he did. Just one example of why relieving teachers need to be told about any special needs of students in the class. oh well, I survived. In the afternoon, my class was all about mocking eachother and talking way too much, I could hardly get out instructions, oh and did I mention hitting. Good grief!

This morning when I got to school I told the Lord I needed some encouragement. I needed something to go right so that I could keep going. Then I remembered Hebrews 12:1-2

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge croud of witnesses to the life of Faith, let us strip of every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting Him, He endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now, He is seated in the place of honor beside God's throne." (NLT)

I am so thankful that God's Word is refreshing and new every day. Then I had a wonderful student in one of my morning classes today, it was just the right encouragement I needed to keep myself on top of my game. God is so good.

shout out

Well this is pretty much just a shout out to Nigel from Redoubt North. Every time I go to Nigel and Julia's house or church or see them, he always has a commentary on my blog status and stories. This cracks me up. Honestly, I know my friends and family read this thing but I forget. So good on ya Nigel for keepin' me on my toes and reminding me to keep my blog goin'

Choosing Joy

Over the past few days, life has just been nice, busy but nice. Saturday, I slept in for the first time in a long time. I needed that rest. Sunday, I sang in a contata at Greyfriers Presbeterian Church. The choir I sing in is going to sing "Come Redeemer" many times over the next few months. I don't think I really understood how huge of a deal it was when I joined, but it is fun. On Sunday, we sang two services. We have presentations in June and July as well. "Come Redeemer" is a cantata that is all Scripture put to music. I absolutely love singing it and I'm memorizing Scripture at the same time. Sunday was a day of complete Joy. I was also able to spend time with my friend Serina and help her edit some papers. It was a good day.

Today there were many times I had to choose joy. Teaching intermediate school can be so hard. I just feel like I don't know how to communicate with my students sometimes. I want to enjoy teaching, I want my students to enjoy learning, but this whole school thing is a two way street. I need my students to work with me, listen, and follow directions. But anyway, at the end of the day, I am choosing joy. I would much rather be joyful than frustrated. I'm looking forward to the day when I learn how to effectively teach these students. For now I am praying for strength, energy, and joy!

Washing clothes

Doing wash is so easy in the States! you just go to the machine, stick the clothes in, they come out wet, you stick them in the dryer, they come out warm and dry! Here, we don't really use dryers. Very few people have dryers. Everybody hangs their clothes to dry. Not a problem, except that it takes a few days for anything to dry because it's winter and it rains a little everyday, so the air is damp and sometimes chilly. Not exactly ideal for hanging clothes to dry. So today, I thought I'd go to the laudromat to do my washing because they have dryers! Well, I ended up not having time to dry my clothes all the way because I had choir rehearsal this afternoon and I got a later start than I planned. All in all, I still ended up hanging my clothes out when I got home grr...oh well, it could be worse! I could have to wash my clothes all by hand. I guess, if my clothes still arn't dry tomorrow I might take them back to the laudry and just dry them. We'll see.

Growing

Each of us go through times of growing and being challenged in many different seasons of life. Right now I feel like God is wanting be to grow in so many ways. I've been reading "Woman of Influence" by Pam Farrel and I know God is challenging me through this book. I can feel it inside, it's almost strange. I am not one who usually writes out goals because I generally know what I need to accomplish within myself. I also like to live life as it comes at me, one day, week, month, year at a time. Tonight, I am being challenged to write out some goals. So that's what I'm doing,working on goals, not just a few abstract goals but real ones. I am trying to develop goals for my Spiritual life, Relationships: friends, family ect., Energy: physical life, and Productivity: career, education, ministry. I think this is going to be an intense process. It's going to take more than one night, but at least I'll get a good start. I'm looking forward to this and I think that God is going to use this process to help me better understand myself and who He created me to be.

Pictures at Bethells Beach

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Choir 180

For the past three weeks, choir has been my hardest part of my week. I have choir practice with the kids twice a week, Mondays and Thursdays, I've been getting home utterly exhausted and frustrated by the end of the day. Yesterday, I decided I'd had enough! Before choir I prayed over every single chair in that room out loud. I prayed for every student who would enter the room and I prayed for strength, courage, love, kindness and the right dose of firm. Half way through the rehearsal, I was struggling. My nerves were getting worn down and I needed to get a grip. So I stopped, I asked the students to raise their hands and tell me why they felt the need to mock, swear, hit, kick and mess around in class all the time. I told them that there must be a reason because they did every time they came to choir, so I wanted to hear the reasons from them. Some of my answers: He keeps getting smart, he's touching me, she's mocking me miss, she looked at me. So I said,"Alright, stop getting smart with each other, keep your hands, feet and all parts of your body to yourself, don't mock each other, and look at me, that should solve most if not all of our problems." Now, let's continue. So we did, we went though another song, however there was still too much talking and singing off pitch on purpose. I made it through the song but I was frustrated with them for now disrespecting me. I decided to ask them about that too. So I said, "Now somebody raise your hand and tell me why you all feel the need to disrespect me by talking while I'm teaching, singing off pitch on purpose, and being rude? Again, there must be a purpose and a reason for this, so what is it? Their primary answer: "They're showing off miss" and the expected silence. So I said, "Well, I don't care if you show off on your own time, but don't waste mine." Then I continued: "By this point most of your teachers would be absolutely furious, I'm not angry, my heart is broken for you. I am hard on you because I want you to do well, I don't want you to fail and not learn this music. Then you will be frustrated with yourselves. I need you to work with me so that you succeed!"(By this point I was almost in tears, but I kept my composure). That was it, choir was over. I ended by telling them that our next rehearsal was going to be totally different. They were going to come to choir ready to sing, learn the music, respect each other, and have fun too.

Today was that next rehearsal! I had an entirely different group of students! We made it through four songs, learned new material, successfully learned parts! It was wonderful. God was with me, I know He was. I'm pretty sure someone was either praying for me at that time or prayed for me specifically about that time. I am so thankful this rehearsal! I finally feel like we're getting somewhere and we'll learn the music. I was so encouraged!!! I hope next week goes just as well if not even better, these kids have so much potential. They have great rhythm and really strong voices, they just need to use them correctly and work as a team. This choir I heard today is a 180 degree change from the last rehearsal. Praise the Lord!

Birthday Celebrations

I felt so loved and blessed on my birthday even so far from home. I took off for Bethells beach with one of my friends on Sunday morning and had a wonderful time of journaling, exploring, running, singing. Just enjoying God and thanking him for the life he's given me. Then on Monday night Redoubt North held a carry-in dinner to celebrate with me. I felt so loved and blessed. Thanks to all of you who made me feel special on my birthday!

Netball, painting, and Mt. Wellington

Mmmm....it was sunny today! It was absolutely wonderful. I started out this morning by going to a netball game. Netball is like basketball without dribbling and without a backboard. One of the young girls at Redoubt plays recreation netball. Her name is Bethany and ever since my first Sunday at Redoubt, this 10 yr. old has been my best friend. She is so sweet and really wanted me to come to her netball game, so I did.

This afternoon, I spent the day at Mt. Wellington. It is a big dormant volcano in the middle of the city. I actually use this mountain to help locate where I am and where I have to be in the city. I don't have lake MI but I have Mt. Wellington:) I hiked around, spent some time reading, singing, and just enjoying the day.

This afternoon I was feeling crafty, so I painted. I found some inexpensive concentrated watercolor paints and what not, then just painted for fun. I painted a sunset and tulips, mmm..it was definitely enjoyable. I like painting, I just don't usually have time for it. So it was a nice part of my day today. Tonight I'm going to a birthday party and a house warming party. So off I go.

Jesus shows up

It started yesterday afternoon. My Tues. afternoon class is so difficult. The students just don't want to listen. I waste more time telling them that I will not begin until they are quiet, and repeating instructions because someone wasn't listening or reprimanding students for swearing or you name it...I was/am SICK OF IT!!!!!!!!! For the past two Tuesdays, this class leaves at the end of the day and I'm shot, physically and emotionally. This morning I got to school with a horrible headache, not sure how I was going to face the morning. I sat and prayed for a while, just got honest with Jesus and asked Him to meet me where I was at. I needed His strength today in a mighty way. As you know, Jesus showed up. I turned on some peaceful music, journaled some thoughts and the Lord helped me refocus on what I was there to do. Love these children and teach them music through His love. My headache went away and I was able to enjoy my day. Granted I did keep three students this afternoon for the 2:55 Crew (detention) but I felt good about it. I had a discussion with them when it was finished and we'll see what happens next week. I hope I got through to them at least a little bit! Praise the Lord for helping me through this day and every day! I can only teach because of of Him.

Rock Climbing

Tonight I went rock climbing with Annie, Gram, Nathan, and Aarron. We had a great time. I found out this indoor climbing place is less than ten min. from my house..Way cool! We all had some pretty great climbs. Gram is a great climber, it was amazing to watch him. I am a beginner/intermediate climber, but tonight I definitely had some of my best climbs yet. I usually tire out before I make it to the top, but tonight I made it through at least four or five complete climbs! For me, that's a personal best. Next time I go I'm going to start with one of the harder climbs, tonight, I had already done two faces before I tackled the harder one, so my arms were already pretty sore, but I made it most of the way up. Ok, I think I've rambled enough for one night. I need to get off to bed here soon.

Mission Bay

Last night I went out to Mission Bay for a time of reflection and processing. I wanted to really think about the experiences I've been having and also just spend some quiet time with the Lord. I was so blessed. It was a peaceful night, not too chilly, and not too many people around. It was just serene. When I got there, I jumped over the stone guard wall just like a kid who couldn't wait to play in the sand. Then I just stood and looked around. Looked at the sea, looked at the coast, looked at the islands(volcanoes), look all around. I listened to the waves and the wind, and the slight sound of traffic not too far away and kids who jumped in the fountain. I was just still and it was good. Then I walked down the coast a bit to the playground and just decided to spend some time swinging and singing, it was wonderful. I feel like it's been so long since I had this kind of evening, so peaceful.

After I spent some time by the water, I went across the street to a coffee shop and had a latte while reading. This was nice too. I found a little cove in the corner of the shop that was kinda like a cave, it was perfect. Once I had finished reading I headed for home. When I got home I wanted to look through my Nooma DVDs for a specific one that I want to share with one of my friends on Sat. While I was looking for that one, I ran across another one that I hadn't watched in a while, so I put it in. I hadn't watched this one in so long that I forgot that it was filmed right on Lake MI. I love the water, especially watching the sunset at Lake MI, so when I saw this, it was like God let me have a little piece of home, just for a moment.

I enjoy a busy life, but I also appreciate the time to slow down and reflect. Last night was one of those times. Praise the Lord.

Weekend

This weekend I went to Thames with a family from church. It was Beautiful!! I had a lovely time. We were only gone for Saturday all day and came back Sunday morning in time for church, but it was relaxing and wonderful. I enjoyed the beauty of God's creation and time with friends. It was the perfect ending to a busy week and a great kick-off for the next.

Tonight I went to Shore Grace Church. I was able to see some other friends and worship in a wonderful family of believers. I met some more new people and was incredibly blessed in so many ways. God is so Good and His love is So GREAT!

Weekend

This weekend I went to Thames with a family from church. It was Beautiful!! I had a lovely time. We were only gone for Saturday all day and came back Sunday morning in time for church, but it was relaxing and wonderful. I enjoyed the beauty of God's creation and time with friends. It was the perfect ending to a busy week and a great kick-off for the next.

Tonight I went to Shore Grace Church. I was able to see some other friends and worship in a wonderful family of believers. I met some more new people and was incredibly blessed in so many ways. God is so Good and His love is So GREAT!

Two weeks down

Well, I just finished my second week at Tamaki. I think this is going to be a good fit for me. I am really tired though. This week has been total chaos. I've had something going on every night. In my last post, I mentioned that I have tons of stories, and I do, but there are so many things that happen in one day, that I can't remember what to write about. So I'll give you a rundown of the week:

Monday: School, Mtg, then I head off to Redoubt North Wes. for a meeting about C.I.A (Christ in Action) kids club. This was a planning meeting to discuss what our roles were to be on Thursday. God really confirmed that this is where He wants me to be because of the name C.I.A. At IWU I had an amazing experience traveling with a C.I.A drama team for a summer. Peter came up with this same name for the kids club! God is so cool!

Tuesday: School, Mtg, then I went to see a local high school play. It was a Shakespeare play and I can't for the life of me remember the name of it right now. But the kids did a nice job, they shortened it a bit, which I thought was a good touch. Then I went for coffee to catch up with my friend Sam, who is a youth leader at the Fijian Wes. church which I visited last time was here.

Wednesday: School, then off to a choral directors mtg for the APPA choral festival. This is much like the state honors choir festivals that happen in the states. I am taking our choir in November, I am now learning songs in Maori and Samoan for this festival! Also included in the repertoire is John Rutter's "For the Beauty of the Earth" which I absolutely love, so I'm excited. After this meeting, I headed off to my own choir rehearsal for the community choir that I joined with Ferne.

Thursday: School, No Mtg!!!, then off to C.I.A kids club at Redoubt North Wes. We had a great night. There were six kids from the community that came and a few kids from the church too. It really was the perfect amount of kids for the first time. In two weeks we'll have another C.I.A. we hope to bring in a few more kids for that one, but this week was still a great success. My responsibility was telling the Bible story. Our story this week was about how God called Abraham to move to a new land! How absolutely appropriate!!! It also encouraged the kids to be unselfish with there brothers and sisters, like Abraham with Lot when the two of them split company.

Friday: It's the Weekend!!!! Yay!! No Mtg.!!! Went to get some groceries and now I am headed off to get ready for relaxation. I'm headed to a beach house this weekend with a family from Church. We'll be back Sunday morning, but just having Sat. away will be such a blessing! Praise the Lord! Thanks for all your prayers this week and keep them comin'! I am living in the strength and blessings of the Lord one day at a time.