How Beautiful on the Mountains

Over the past several weeks, my life has been full of things changing. Usually I am not one who handles change so well, so it has been a really challenging yet the Lord is constantly refining me and just making me more like Him whihc is most important anyway right?

My whole life I have lived here in STL. Growing up I never really dreamed about seeing the world or living anywhere else; I was always pretty content here. I have had increible friends and have a wonderful family who all live here and the thought of leaving just never realistically crossed my mind. Since coming to know the Lord and plugging in at an incredible church with such a beautiful body of believers, that desire to leave definately did not increase, and even when it came to choosing a college this past fall, I knew that I wouldnt go far. After just graduating from Mercy and going into my first year of college, so many things were changing all at once and so it just made sense to spend some time at home and getting plugged back in at church and ZOE and just surrounding myself wiht other believers who I know pursuing the Lord. And this past year at Missouri Baptist has been great and I know it was totally the Lords will for me to be here for this transition season of my life. He blessed me with an incredible job nannying for a family who have become family to me. Spending time with the two boys I watch has taught me soooo much and I am constantly in awe of the Lord's perfect timing and how He just orchestrates everythign with such perfection that my mind will never understand. This year has also been wonderful to get to help out at ZOE a lot and be a part of high schoolers lives there. Most of all, I have been so blessed to be a part of a women's bible study at Church and Faith that Works, a ministry focused on older women pouring into and helping younger women. This past year, I have gotten to see the body of Christ in a way I never had before.

It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about how precious these women are to me, but the Lord has placed several women in my life who have just poured Truth and scripture and wisdom and guidance and love and encouragement into my life continually over these past months. The Lord has used them countless times to speak to me about various things and to just walk by me though some tough stuff, constantly being uplifted and spurred on in y faith. I have never seen more realness and humilty in my entire life then what these women have shown me just in talking about thier own lives. I have seen the power of prayer! Man have I had some prayer warriors this year. How blessed I am that the Lord surrounded me with women who are just so persistant, steadast, obedient to the Lord, and encouraging. Most of all I loooovvvee that they are all such godly wives and moms and simply by being around them and watching them and in thier lives I have leanred so much about how to be a godly wife to my husband one day and mom to my kids. These women mean the world to me and have been such a beautiful picture of th body of Christ as the Lord intends for it to be.

So all of this to say, I know that this is exactly where the Lord wanted me to be this past year for all of these reasons, and for all of these reasons, I do not want to leave STL. However, since graduating from Mercy, I have known that the Lord hasn't called me to be comfortable in my little bubble of Wildwood, MO forever. I had no idea what that would look like or what He would ask me to do, but I have known it would come. In my head I thought maybe going across the world for a month to serve Him would do it....but it seems He had other plans.

So as I said many things in my life are about to change because in the fall I am going to be moving to Blacksburg, VA to go to school at Radford Unv. All I can say is that as scared as I am about all of these new situations and changes and as hard as it will be to leave my life here behind, I KNOW that I KNOW this is completely the Lord's will for my life. It is a crazy phenomenon that occurs when everything in your flesh doesn't want to do something, and the harder it becomes to do that one thing, the more you know you have to do it. In Phil. 4:7 Paul talks about the peace of God which transcends all understanding and this is one of those pivital moments in my walk with the Lord where I experienced what Paul talks about right here in my life when it came to deciding about Radford. I have a peace that I cannot explain or make sense of and despite the fears and insecurities of my flesh, this peace wipes it all away.

Radford University

Really that peace is more then enough, but sometimes I can be a little hard-headed and the Lord knows me well and He just knew He was gunna have to make it even mre clear to me about where He wanted me because eventhough I knew from the second I visited VA that I had a peace there, I still doubted whether or not that was really His will. Even after I got into Radford, I still had many hesitations. Of course, I'm plugged into an incredible church, get to help out at ZOE which I love, have an incredible job, get free living and food at home, have my whole family here, have all of these women who I'm learning from and with, get to do a lot of things to help out at Mercy, and have some incredible friends. I am comfortable here...its safe here. It is home. So leaving all of this to go to a state 11 hours away where I know one person just didnt make a whole lot of sense, but when does the Lord ever make sense?! So I had applied to Maryville here in STL becasue they have a great nursing program as well and found out I did NOT get accepted there. Usually that wouldnt be a big deal, but I have good grades and ACT score and such so really there is no reason for me not to get in besides the fact that it is the Lord simply closing a door to simply eliminate the option of staying here! I love how He does this. Also, all of my classes from MoBap transfered perfectly to Radford which is amazing...even my New Testament class counts for a credit at Radford and it is not even a Christian school! The Lords hand is really just all over.

My sweet roomate :)

So I will be living with four other girls in an apartment on Virginia Tech's campus and commute about 10mins to Radford. I am living with my precious friend Lesley who has been at Tech this past year and three of her firends from school. I know the Lord 's plan is just perfect and I have no idea what He has in His mind, but I know He is faithful and sovereign and He always blows my mind. I am nervous but also sooo excited to get to experience life as a college student and have to rely on the Lord in a way I never have before. I know He is just going to continue to teach me, challenge me and refine me, which really is my prayer. I have no idea what this new season of my life is going to bring, but I do know that I am just taking it one day at a time, moment by moment just being obedint to what He has told me thus far and trusting Him to show me more in His timing, but learning to be content just where I'm at. What a challenge that is sometimes!

When I went up to visit Les this past winter, the Lord gave me a verse, well two verses, on my plane ride up there. They are both in Isaiah and the first one talks about taking the good news to the mountains. This was my first time ever seeing a real mountain and so it is crazy because in the moment, I really never thought I would end up going to Radford, but the Lord was already telling me where my feet would be taking the good news...to the mountains! The other verse is about how the Lord goes before me and behind me...what a cool picture that is that He is both preparing the way ahead of me and still protecting me from the behind.

Isa. 52: 7
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who prolcaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion "Your God reigns!"

Isa. 52:12
But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, the God of Israel will be your rear gaurd.
  

Faithful Provider

Well I am about three weeks away from my trip which is pretty surreal to me. It seems like I have been praying for, talking about and fundraising for this trip for so long that it is crazy that it is really just about here. The Lord has been so faithful in providing for Australia and I have gotten to just see His hand all over so many situations in this process. I have learned so much about trusting Him as my provider. In these last two to three weeks I have about $950 to go until I have reached the total amount needed for this trip. There have been several fees added on to my trip total over the past several weeks which incude: shuttle transportation to and from the airport to TeenMania, going down two days early to train to be a group leader, and a fuel surcharge for flying internationally. These expenses were not initially includd in the base cost ofmy trip so I have a buit more fundraising to do to get the rest of this money in a short amount of time, but I know the Lord is big enough to provide. I just look at what has already been contributed and am completely blown away by Him. I am so blessed to literally be surrounded by this community of believers who love the Lord and love to give!

In addition to sending out a few more support letters, I am planning several car washes on May 29th and June 5th. If anyone is interested in helping out or more information about this please let me know.

I also found out a little bit about my team. As of right now there are only five other people ticketed (plane tiket is bought) to go to Australia. The deadline for this has long passed, however there is a chance more will be coming. This has been a little confusing because as of now, there are 23 of us signed up to go on this trip, but only six of us are locked in. So I really have no idea how many will end up coming, but I know the Lord has it figured out and He knows exactly who He wants on this trip and I am excited to get to meet these people and spend this month serving and learning with them.

Also, a HUGE thank you to Nancy Alcorn and Mercy Ministries for supporting as a Mercy grad on this trip as well!

He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing. And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt. deut. 10:18-19