Corrie Diane

Home from Africa

2007-01-10T15:39:00.000-08:00

Wow! I was just in Africa for about 2 weeks and it was awesome! I can't wait to tell you all about it. Not that anyone ever checks for updates since I'm a loser and haven't written since October. Well, I hope to change that so keep checking! I have a ton to share with you!

Some highlights from my trip:
-No luggage for about 10 days
-Driving in South Africa
-Going on Safari for 2 days
-Being broken emotionally and spiritually
-Making awesome new friends from around the US and around the World!

A date in Indiana

2006-10-24T14:21:00.000-07:00

So it looks like when I visit my parents in Indiana over Christmas break, I have a blind date. (If you can call it that) My mom has met a great guy that she wants me to meet and he seems interested in meeting me as well. Interesting...

I'm stuck

2006-10-05T23:15:00.000-07:00

I'm having the hardest time writing my final paper for Old Testament. Ugh! It is not fun. How would you respond to this...

In 4-5 pp, showing a mastery of class materials, discussions, and readings, discuss how Genesis through Ecclesiastes in the Christian OT opens a particular future for humanity out of God’s own revelation within this particular text. How does this revelation compare the means and content of the revelation of the god of Moral Therapeutic Deism (Relationality)?

Yeah... that's why I'm stumped. I have lots of thoughts in my head... but how can I verbalize it in a paper? I'm going to be up very late working on it. I have one page done and am stuck!

Time is going very quickly

2006-10-03T00:14:00.000-07:00

I got a 96/100 on my Hebrew Exam, and I'm pretty proud of myself. I have 2 big papers due on Friday so I'll be doing a lot of writing this week!

Who would have thought...

2006-09-27T12:27:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling good about school right now. I received great comments from my writing proff on my first 4-5 page essay I wrote. I guess all those years working as a secretary, writing letters, newsletters and bulletins would come in handy. My proff usually give A's at all and if she does, she may only give one. Well... I got an A and her comments were that it was nearly perfectly edited and very compelling. After class, I was studying for Hebrew during chapel in the PBC when she struck up a conversation with me about my essay and my life. She told me that I am very smart and it surprised her that I didn't go to college after high school. Anyway, I'm very appreciative of the positive comments and the fact that she cares about my life & my experiences.

I had a Hebrew Exam today and I feel that I did well. I studied a lot and worked hard on learning vocab. This next week, I'm going to have to work hard on Old Testament reading. Our class is over on Monday by next Wednesday we have a 100 point Summary due, multiple choice test on Joshua through the end of the Old Testament, and a 3-4 page Essay for our final. Fun stuff. Good thing I have Monday through Wednesday off from work so I can spend a lot of time on the essay.

So far, college is going well! Oh yeah... and I realized last night that I only have to go to 12 chapels a semester because I'm over the age of 26. That means I only have to go to 1 out of the 28 chapels left because I've already gone to 11. Of course, I do enjoy going & will plan to go unless I have to study for a Hebrew quiz or test.

My niece is the cutest!

2006-09-18T16:46:00.000-07:00

My sister Julia just called me to let my niece, McKyah, say hi and tell me "shake your booty". How cute is that?! She dances around and says it. I miss her so much! We need to set up web cams so that I can see her. Last week Jules called me and McKyah was sqealing in the background "Cooorrieee, Cooorrieee" because she was excited to see my myspace profile with pictures of me. She is too cute! I'm visiting them for Christmas, so I'm counting the days.

just the beginning...

2006-09-14T10:20:00.000-07:00

I took my first official college test last Friday and already got my paper back on Tuesday. I got a 218 out of 250. I'm happy with that, especially since I stayed up that night writing a paper for another class. Now... my Hebrew quiz yesterday wasn't so great. Good thing we can drop our 3 lowest quiz scores. I need to spend another hour studying my flashcards. Pretty crazy considering I already spent over an hour and a half working on them. One cool thing is that my Old Testement Proffesor will ocassionally use Hebrew words and I know what they mean and how to say them before he explains it to the class. Things are going well. I'm taking a few people tomorrow night to PLNU night at Magic Mountain. I'm excited to go and see a ton of people I haven't seen for a while. So that's what's going on with me at the moment.

My first official all-nighter

2006-09-09T02:23:00.000-07:00

I pulled my first official college all nighter last night. I didn't get home fro work last night until 11:30 because I picked up a bussing shift. I really need the money, so I felt like I couldn't turn it down. It didn't help that I had 3 more pages of a 4 page Narrative draft to finish for writing, about 2 hours of Hebrew homework and vocab practice, and a mid term to prepare for. I could have been proactive and gotten some of it done earlier in the week, but Saydee was visiting for all week, which distracted me a little from work. I'm actually surprised at how well my body & brain handled the lack of sleep. I wish I could say that it will never happen again, but I know better than that. I did finish my paper for writing, got a perfect on my Hebrew vocab quiz, and feel that I did pretty well on my mid-term essay we had to write in class for Old Testament. Surprizingly, I still haven't gone to bed yet. I think my brain just didn't want to shut down because it knew that I finally had a night off from work and didn't have to worry about any homework due the next day. I did snooze for about an hour during a movie with friends in the lounge. Now it is time to end my slumber strike. I take Saydee to the train station tomorrow morning for her trip back home to Central California. I'm also working a double shift at work tomorrow. We'll see how that goes after lack of sleep.

What would you do for some extra cash?

2006-09-03T00:00:00.000-07:00

An older gentleman came into work tonight Tonight and slipped me a twenty so he didn't have to wait the 15 minutes I told him it would be for a party of 4. It was really strange and a little uncomfortable. I didn't think twice... I kindly let him know that I couldn't do anything for him and he would just have to wait. I guess 15 minutes was just too long because he took his twenty and left, probably going across the parking lot to try the same thing on the host at TGI Fridays. Later when I told one of the servers, he called me too honest. Wow! Is there such a thing as being too honest? I think not. I can't believe that some people think they can get whatever they want by just pulling out a wad of cash. Sorry! You just can't buy this girl off.

1 down, many more to go

2006-08-28T16:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I officially completeld one whole week of college. I definitely didn't have enough time this weekend to everything done. I did have just a little bit of time to lay out on Saturday before going to work, but Sunday was full of church, lunch, homework, work & more homework. I had a quiz in Hebrew today and ended up doing some last minute studying with my flashcards while my Hebrew Prof spoke in chapel. I feel that I did alright on the quiz but could definitely use some more studying. It is a very dificult language to master. I finally have another day off from work tomorrow, but will be spending a lot of time catching up on some Old Testament reading sinced I switched into another class and missed 3 days. It's a quad class so we meet 4 days a week for only 5 weeks. Emily, the daughter of Norwalk's new pastor, is in the class as well. I'm glad that I have a studying buddy. Well, I better get some reading done for Freshman Comp. before I have to leave for work in 45 minutes. I think it is about time to write about something other than school. Next post, I'll write about some interesting people that have crossed my path while working at BJ's.

A little break

2006-08-24T14:17:00.000-07:00

I don't have to work tonight so I finally have time to relax and just enjoy college life for a bit. As soon as Sarah is out of class, we're going to the grocery store and Target. Later tonight, I'm going to do dinner in the caf with my new roommates. Oh yeah, and I have to study for Hebrew which is a very complicated language to learn. I really like my prof though and it turns out that he is my Advisor. I also have to visit the Wellness Center soon & get caught up on my immunizations. I've had some of them in highschool, but don't have any record of them. I also have to visit Academic Advising again to try to switch my Old Testament class. I'm just not digging my Prof very much. One of the books for his class is a 69 page history commentary that he wrote and another is a 94 page something or other on the Ten Commandments. We'll see if there is an opening in the other class that fits into my schedule. If not, I'll just have to tough it out. So far, college seems to suite me well. We'll see how I feel about it a few weeks from now.

Snot & Tests

2006-08-22T10:12:00.000-07:00

Let me just tell you that runny noses and taking tests don't go together very well. I got to my 2nd day of Freshman Comp a few minutes late this morning. I really don't have a good excuss except that I'm adjusting to less sleep & waking up about 3 to 4 hours earlier than I have all summer. It took me a few minutes to get situated before I started the test to determine my strengths & weaknesses in grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, etc. Most everyone was on question 5 by the time I finished writing my name on the scantron. Here's where the runny nose comes in... I spent most of class sniffing and wiping my nose on the arm of my sweatshirt that was now sitting on my lap. In-between sips of coffee and wipes of my nose, I worked on my test, a little distracted by how much noise I was making as I sniffed and day-dreaming of tissues. As students finished & got up to leave, I took my time making sure that I read every possible answer and carefully picked the incorrect sentences, all the while thinking about how far behind I was from everyone. I ended up finishing my test, just as a few students from the next class were strolling in and chatting with one another. Of course, I was the last one, finishing a few minutes after another girl. I don't feel too bad about it, because I'm pretty sure I did well on the test.

Two things I've learned from this morning... Never leave my dorm without a pack of tissues and show up early to class! Which reminds me, I should leave in a few minutes to head up the hill for my Old Testament class. I've been told by a friend that I probably won't like this Prof very much and may not agree with him on some things. Great! At least I'll be challenged. I just pray that I have the courage to voice my thoughts & opinions if I disagree. Day 2 of college is almost over.

First Day of School

2006-08-21T14:17:00.000-07:00

My first day of college went a little like this...

6:20am Alarm Buzzes me out of a deep sleep
6:21am Hit snooze button
6:30am Alarm again/ snooze again
6:40am Alarm once more... Time to wake up & get ready
7:19am Out the door and on my way to my first class
7:30am Class number 1 - Fitness through Movement, on the field
Listen to the Proff speak for about 15 minutes
7:45am Class dismissed early
7:50am Bump into a friend outside the PBC and join him & his 2 friends for breakfast in the Caf
8:20am Head to class number 2 - Freshman Composition
8:30am Meet my proff and fellow freshman in the class
8:55am Get my first assignment to write 10 qualities that make the essay read in class either well written or not. Of course it's due tomorrow... (This is going to be a fun one!) :(
9:30am Class dismissed
9:40am Get a seat in Chapel & wait for Sarah to join me.
9:50am Worship to a few good songs
10:10am Fall asleep while the speaker speaks. (at least I wasn't alone... Sarah joined me in slumber)
10:40am Leave chapel & meet up with new friend Amy to head to Hebrew together
11:00am Class number 3 begins.
11:20am After roll & looking through the very thick silibus, we begin learning the Hebrew Alphabet. (This Proff waists no time)
12:05pm Out of class and on to lunch at Arby's since the Caf line is all the way up the hill. Laura meets us there even though she just rolled out of bed.
1:30pm Back from lunch and locked out of my room (better find my room key)

So that's what my day consisted of so far. All very exciting, I know! I have to miss our Dorm meeting tonight because I work at 5:30. As soon as my roommates get back, I'm hoping to do some laundry, take a nap and do that writing assignment before going to work. We'll see how much I get done.

Anticipation

2006-08-20T22:51:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is my first day of school in over 8 years! Wow! It's all very exciting. I have Fitness through movement at 7:30 am tomorrow. That's way too early! I guess I better go to bed. Wish me luck!

Moving In

2006-08-18T13:54:00.000-07:00

I found out last Friday that I got a room on-campus. (nothing like last minute details, huh!?) I officially moved into Goodwin yesterday and starting New Student Orientation. It was a little surreal checking in and going through the different stations as an adult having people ask me "are your parents with you today?". It is all kinda funny. I also chose to skip a few of the sessions for NSO. I really didn't think it was necesary for me to go to the "Get Aquanted Party".

My new roommates are really great. Sadly, I'm not with Sarah, but she's just a unit away. I'm just thankful that I have a place to live at this point. Katie helped me apartment search last week when I was scrambling around trying to figure out where to live. God is good and answered prayer! I spent my first night watching a movie in one of the guys dorms with some friends and then staying up until 3:00 taking an online Strengths Quest thing that we'll be discussing in a class tomorrow. I was pretty happy with my top 5 results. I don't quite remember what they are at the moment since it was so late, but they suit me pretty well.

Well, that's it for now. I promise that I will keep everyone updated more now that I have regular internet access and will be on the computer all the time.

Wow! It's been a while!

2006-07-18T01:38:00.000-07:00

For my friends & family who check for updates every once in a while, here goes...

I'm enjoying life in San Diego working as a host at BJ's and waiting for school to start. I'm having a great time meeting new people at work & keeping very busy during my shifts. I love my apartment with Laura even though I'm only living there for another month. Our roommate is very sweet and is hardly ever home. I got to visit some of my family just over a week ago in Washington at my cousin's wedding. My mom & brother met me as I got off the plane in Seattle and I didn't realize how much I missed them until I saw them. It is a new thing having my parents living in another state and it's going to take some time getting used to. I won't get to see them again until Christmas. Our wireless internet that we were getting in our apartment no longer works, so internet use is limited, but I promise to continue to write.

More Updates on Life...

2006-06-05T12:15:00.000-07:00

Memorial Day weekend in San Diego at PLNU was great! I enjoyed the weather even though it was overcast for 2 days. The sun finally came out & made it even more beautiful! I met 2 of the other 3rd Wave Conference Interviewees & spent the weekend working ELEV8 with them. We did registration, award set up & other fun things. I spent time with great DP friends that I met last year as a new District President. We found out on the last day that all 3 of us girls are going to 3rd Wave along with another girl who is studying in Europe right now. I'm really excited & am glad that I am going with such great girls. Being on campus, sleeping in the dorms & eating in the Caf made me even more excited about going to school & living there in the fall.

Yesterday was my last Sunday at Norwalk Nazarene. Mike & Jill were gone along with about 60 others from our church for Caravan Round-Up Camp out. I led music for the few of us left at church & it went pretty well. Except that the person who normally brings her laptop & does the powerpoint was gone as well & didn't have anyone cover for her. We ended up singing 3 songs out of the hymnal & the rest were familiar enough that it wasn't too bad not having words.

Today I'm finishing up the loose ends in the church office so that I don't leave the new secretary with unfinished projects & things that I was supposed to take care of. I have an interview on Wednesday afternoon for a Host position at BJ's in La Jolla and then I officially move on Sunday after church. Praise God! Laura found us a room for rent in Point Loma. The girl whose room we are renting is gone from now until mid August which is exactly what we needed! God is good! Still no news on a job just yet. I'll probably have to work 2 part time jobs. I still have lots of packing & stuff to do before I move. Hopefully this will be my last day in the office so I have this week to work on it. I'm a little sick & a lot drained right now partly due to the fact that I spent 7 hours cleaning the church on Saturday. I hope that tomorrow will be a new day with lots of energy & motivation.

Up in the air...

2006-05-24T13:14:00.000-07:00

I had a wonderful time visiting Julia, Micah & the girls in Oklahoma. We were busy and on the go the whole time. She had just started her new job as Children's Minister at her church & we spent the week prepping, priming, painting & faux finishing the office. It was a lot of work, but fun to be spending time with my sister. McKyah calls me "woa-wee". It is so stinking cute! I'm excited to see Julia & McKyah again in July at my cousin's wedding in Washington.

I've been training the new Secretary at the church & there is so much to go over since she won't have a Pastor to ask questions regarding all church business. My last day in the office is next Friday. I'm sure I will get many phone calls over the next few weeks with random questions.

I have 2 more Wednesday Nights & 1 more Sunday with my Youth Group. I'm really going to miss them! I'll have to make it a point to come and visit them or keep in contact with them on myspace. They are in very capable hands with Lena & Chris in charge. I'm hoping that the new Pastor will be youth-minded. The church board is interviewing their first candidate tomorrow night. We will see...

As for my plans for moving & school... I plan to actually drive down to San Diego Monday, June 5th because I am leading the Sunday Morning Worship (music) on the 4th. I don't have a job yet & won't have an apartment yet, but I'll be staying on Laura's couch for a week or so until we find an apartment. The plan is to have an apartment for 2 months and then move on campus for school. I'm hoping to waitress at a nice restaurant, but that is still all up in the air. For the 2 months I'm down there before school, I may also get a job at Starbucks so that I can work as much as possible to be okay financially. I'll be driving back & forth a few times to visit my mom before she leaves & then be there when my dad comes back from Indiana to meet the movers & they leave for good. I also plan to visit my sister Jamie when she comes for a few weeks from South Carolina. Then there's a few weddings and other miscellaneos reasons to come back. Man! That's a lot of driving & gas is so stinking expensive! I'll hopefully carpool with Laura for at least one of those trips. :) When school starts, I plan on living on campus with my friend Sarah who will be a junior. That is also still up in the air until PLNU confirms it. Biblical Studies will be my major & I would love to get involved in some of the Love Works Mission Trips. When I shared with the the head of the Love Works program that I will be attending PLNU in the fall, he mentioned to me that he should have me lead one of the groups. That would be awesome! I'm still not exactly sure of God's call on my life for future work in ministry, but I know that He will open doors & reveal it to me in time.

I'll be driving down to PLNU this weekend to be interviewed by a few District Presidents & the Regional President of NYI for a spot in the group going to South Africa for the NYI Third Wave Conference. Third Wave is a conference for Emerging Youth Leaders in the Church of the Nazarene. The conference explores what it means to be a global Christian through the Church in todays world. Young people from around the world will be there. It is an awesome thing to be a part of!

So that's what's going on in the life of Corrie. So many things... Please continue to pray for me & all of these things that are not quite settled yet. God is so good & has been blessing me in amazing ways. I'm still praying specifically about the cost of school & a job that will provide enough money to take care of my bills & things while at school.

Answer to Prayer

2006-05-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

I found out while I was gone that I will get 50% Ministerial discount instead of the 25% I would get for my dad being a pastor because they are considering me the person in full-time ministry. Praise God! I still have about $6000 to come up with, but it is better than before. God is good & is providing what I need. There is so much to think about & figure out over the next few weeks, I'm just a little overwhelmed.

What was I thinking?

2006-05-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

I'm leaving on a Jet Plane... don't know when I'll be back again!

Okay, maybe it's not a Jet Plane & I do know when I'll be back... I leave EARLY tomorrow morning to visit my sister in Oklahoma. Early as in 6:30 AM my flight takes off from LAX! I just wanted to get into Tulsa as early as possible to have more time to spend with Julia & McKyah. I'm really excited, but I have lots to do in the office in preperation for being away for a little over a week. It's not really good timing with all that's going on at church. Oh well... While I'm away, I'm going to be spending a lot of time in prayer! Specifically about the $9,000 I need for school.

What's been going on?

2006-04-27T10:12:00.000-07:00

I think it's time for a fun picture.

This is my friend Sarah from PLNU. She will hopefully be my roommate next year if all goes well. She is a lot of fun!

I've been very busy lately. Last weekend was our District NYI Convention. It went very well & I'm relieved that it's over. I was in charge of the entire Business Session & was very nervous because I don't know all the laws & procedures of conducting voting & business. Luckily we didn't have any problems arise. I'm also relieved that my year as NYI President is over. It was a great year, but I definitly learned that I'm better at being a support person & being given certain tasks to excel in instead of being the head honcho. God is good & has blessed me for stepping up & out of my comfort zone to serve Him.

This weekend is my church's Women's Retreat in Oak Glen. I'm looking forward to resting & having a good time with the women in my church. Next Wednesday, I fly to Oklahoma to visit Julia & the family for vacation. I'm really excited to spend some time with them. The rest of May is going to be filled with packing & preparing to move. I have so much in my parent's garage that needs to be sorted through. Some of it has been packed up for over 3 years. I also have a lot that has been packed up since moving back to my parent's house over a year ago. It's time to go through everything I own, get rid of stuff, pull out what I want to take to school with me, & re-pack the rest. Fun stuff! Anyone have room in their garage to store some of my stuff while I'm away at school? ;)

News Flash

2006-04-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

My parents are moving to Indiana where my dad is taking a pastoral position at a Wesleyan church. My uncle is the Senior pastor and has a staff of about 5 other pastors! My dad will be the pastor in charge of their 2 large schools. It's all very exciting & great for my parents. This position will allow my dad to use his gifts more than he does now. It is all happening so fast! My last day in the office before moving to San Diego for school will be June 2nd and his last day is basically the same. Whew! I didn't realize how much their move was effecting me until yesterday when I cried everytime I thought about it. It doesn't help that I have a lot of added stress with NYI Convention, preparing for school, and other work & ministry things going on. It's just really hard for me because I've been living with them off & on for the last few years after my divorce and have been going to & ministering at the same church - OUR church. They have always been there for me through my life struggles. All 3 of my sisters are married with kids and my brother is off in his own little world traveling around on cruise ships or working in Japan. I'm basically starting over on my journey of life with so many new things going on and I don't have that constant of them living nearby anymore. I know that I'll be okay and that God has GREAT plans for me & my life. Moving & starting school & a new job will help me in the whole transition of their move. I'll be too busy to wallow in sadness. As far as "coming home", I'll just have to share a room with Micaela or sleep on my sister's couch when I want to visit my Norwalk church family. I sure hope Christi & Mark don't move away. Then I'll have no immediate family in California. How much change can one person handle?!

Prayer would be great!

2006-04-13T14:02:00.000-07:00

There's been a lot going on lately! I just haven't taken the time to write about it. I've probably avoided writing about it because the list of things to do is so daunting! There's so much going on with the ending of my term as DP and lots going on at my local church as well. God has been teaching me a whole lot about people & communication in my ministry as Youth Director. It is not easy to be a leader to adults who aren't used to being led & have their own opinions and views on things that differ from yours. I know that I have a lot to learn, but I also know that God, my church and my pastor has put me in the position of Youth Director for a reason. They respect me & trust me to lead the teens of our church. God has been confirming me as a leader and in my ministry through the passages in 1 & 2 Timothy. Even though it has really been a tough few weeks, God has helped me through & I'm learning even more about working with others in ministry.

Besides all that, I'm in transition and will soon be a full-time student. I'll be moving to San Diego very soon & taking a few classes during the summer. I'm praying that I find a good job quickly so that I will get into the swing of things before starting at PLNU in August. There are so many things that are up in the air, so I would love for some prayer. Here are a few things...

- God's guidence in everything!
- new job that pays well
- apartment for 2 months while doing summer school
- summer school
- rooming at PLNU
- $$$ for school & life
- the teens & youth leaders that I'm leaving
- my last month as Youth Pastor & Secretary at my church
- starting fresh in many aspects of my life

times are changing

2006-03-29T10:01:00.000-08:00

I had a great time in San Diego this weekend. I love it there! I think part of the reason I love it so much is because I have many good friends down there & I can sort of get away from all of my responsibilities & take a break. I don't get much interaction with friends that are single & close to my. Here at home, I can either hang out with teens from my youth group or my older married friends. Even though most of my SD friends are years younger, I'm basically in the same station of life as they are right now. While I was there, I got to visit Mission Valley church of the Nazarene with Laura. I had seen the church off the freeway while visiting Laura a while ago, checked them out online, and called to ask about their college/career class & contemporary service. I also had a Youth Pastor/ NYI President friend from that area highly recomend the church. Laura finally went to check it out a few weeks ago & seems to like it. The Sunday School class was very thought provoking & interactive. I did feel like I'm on the older end of the class, but it didn't bother me. The service was good too. It is a very large church, but still felt comfortable & friendly. There are a lot of young people as well, which is nice. Of course, you can't get a feel for what a church is really like until you've been there a number of times, so I'm looking forward to checking it out more when I move. I have to admit... I really enjoyed just GOING to church. I'm so involved at my church that I'm always so busy Sunday morning. I come home from church feeling like I just worked a half day. I'm really looking forward to spending some time being fed & not getting too involved in ministry while going to school. As much as I love ministry & serving, a change of pace will be good for me. There will be a lot of different kinds of opportunities to serve in areas that are unfamiliar to me while at school. It's all very exciting!

Note to self...

2006-03-28T10:17:00.000-08:00

Don't wear suede on a rainy day. Anyone know how to clean suede?

Spending time with friends

2006-03-24T15:49:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night, I got to dress up & go out to The Melting Pot with Melissa Mae & some friends. Mel is visiting this week from New Jersey & a few friends went out to celebrate her Birthday. We ate way too much chocolate fondu & had a great time together. Tonight, I'm heading to San Diego for the weekend. My schedule has been very busy & will continue to be busy over the next few months so I decided to take a break. I'm going to visit with some friends & also spend some time picking up applications for employment. Time is going by so quickly and before I know it, I'll be moving down there! There are still a lot of financial things up in the air with school, so please pray for me! I know that this is where God is leading & I trust that He will take care of me, but it is still very scary!

a little of this week

2006-03-18T14:33:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, Laura came & visited during her Spring Break & we went to Disneyland after church. We had a lot of fun! It's been a long time since I got to spend time with Laura here in my part of the world. Lately it's only been when I drive down to SD to visit. Anyway, she had to drive back to work for a few days but I guess she didn't feel like she spent enough time here so she came back late Thursday night after work. Well, it was more like early Friday morning. :) She spent the day with me at work yesterday & helped me a lot! I have so much going on with so many different things, it was nice to have her here to help me focus. After work, we took a few of my youth group girls to a Game Night at a nearby church. We had a lot of fun even though it was just us & the Cerritos teens. The Point Loma Players (a drama group from PLNU) were there & they did a bunch of skits for us. We hung out, ate pizza & played Sardines in the dark church. I'm really proud of my girls. They actually enjoyed themselves even though it wasn't a big group of people. Sure, they were a little bummed that there weren't more churches there, but they really made the best of things & had fun with NO complaints.

Tweeked

2006-03-14T09:29:00.000-08:00

It's not fun being totally out of alignment. Anyone know a good chiropractor?

Lots to learn

2006-03-08T10:41:00.000-08:00

I've been involved in Youth Ministry for about 6 years. Some of the time I've been a partner in ministry with someone else. I've also spent some time out of a local youth group & have focused my attention on the district level as a leader. Now I am the Youth Minister working with a few volunteer sponsors at my church. God has taught me a lot over the last 6 years & has really stretched me emotionally, spiritually & personally. I know that i'm not perfect & sometimes fall short, but I am continually learning from my experiences, from other people & from God. This time around in ministry, my focus has been on relationships. I've shared about it before & that is where my heart is! God has allowed me the awesome privilage to build lasting relationships with my teens and I wouldn't trade that for anything! One of my girls shared with me what her life would be like if I hadn't have cared so much for her & spent time with her. She had been starting down the wrong path & did a complete turn around. I don't take credit for it! It is a God thing! All I am doing is following God's lead & spending time with her, sometimes just hanging out, sometimes in deep conversations about the Word & life & other times just listening. It makes me grateful for this great lesson from God & the confirmation that I'm doing the right thing & following His will. Sure there is a time for discipline, but I must pick my battles just like a parent must do with their children. Is it important to scold one of my teens for wearing a hat in church or for putting their feet up on a chair in the youth room? I feel that there are more important things going on in their lives & reason why they act the way they do. Maybe I'm just rambling, maybe I'm just sharing my heart. Whatever it is, I know that God has me here for a reason & I will do whatever I can to be used by Him for the time I'm here!

Cherishing family moments

2006-03-02T10:13:00.000-08:00

In a family with 5 grown kids, we have to cherish the times when we are ALL together. This picture was in July of 2003 right before Julia's wedding. With Jeremy often away for long periods of time in Japan or on a ship out in the ocean somewhere, Julia in Oklahoma, and Jamie in South Carolina, getting together is a major feat! As our individual families grow, it gets even more difficult to get all of the siblings, spouses, & kids together. I'm just blessed to be a part of a great family that truly loves to be together! We've come a long way since our weekly lunches on Sundays after church in our Long Beach house.

I really am coordinated!

2006-03-01T10:04:00.000-08:00

Last night I went back to the step class at the gym that I first went to & enjoyed. It was a blast! The instructor put steps together & repeated them a few times so that I could actually figure it out. Even though some of the steps were different from the time before, I caught on quickly. I was glad to redeam myself after the "walk-out" at the other instructor's class & confirm in my head that I really am coordinated. There were times were I had to stop & take a break because she was working us so hard. It was fun & exciting & a challenge (in a good way). She called out steps ahead of time so that we knew what we were doing. After class, I told her that I loved the class and I really liked being worked hard on cardio & that she was a great teacher. I plan to go to her class at least once a week!

Let's stage a walk-out!

2006-02-28T09:58:00.000-08:00

I've been trying different classes at the gym & having a fun time. I took aerobics in high school and absolutely loved STEP so I tried a step class a few weeks ago and enjoyed it. Of course I was a little rusty, but I did a pretty good job keeping up. The teacher was great & I was really challenged. It definitely got my heart rate up & the steps were challenging but fun! So last night I decided to try the other step class with a different teacher. I was just not feeling it. The teacher was a lot older and it wasn't as much of a cardio challenge for me, but the steps were outrageous! I'm a pretty coordinated person and the fact that I just couldn't catch on might be a tell that the class was too complicated for most. There was too much switching the feet and doing steps all around the step so at some points we weren't even looking at the instructor. How can you figure out steps if you have to look behind you? She just kept adding different steps together and I felt that there was not enough repetition of each step to catch on. 30 minutes through the hour class, I walked out. I just put my step away & walked out. It wasn't that I cared about looking stupid in the class and I'm pretty patient when it comes to learning new things, but she is just not the teacher for me. The sad thing is that I was not alone in my thinking. 2 others walked out of the class and another girl just sat down in the back waiting for her friend. Needless to say, I will not be going back to her class. Give me a step class where I can sweat more, be challenged aerobicly and simpler steps with more repetition. I think I'm going to try the other class again tonight.

Teenagers crack me up!

2006-02-17T10:39:00.000-08:00

I love that when I'm in the middle of a lesson about falling in love with God in a crowded room of teens & a few adult leaders, one particular student thinks it is totally okay to yell out, "your forehead is shiny!". I just had to laugh! What else could I do? I also said, "Thanks, it is very hot up here on stage, very close to the hot stage lights. Would you like to come up here & finish the lesson for me or do you have powder in your pocket that I could use?" Of course, he didn't want to come up on stage nor did he have a powder compact in his pocket. I didn't mind the outburst too much. I thought it was pretty funny. It does get very hot upstairs in our youth room, especially on the 3 foot stage with lights right in front of my face! I seriously get sweaty every week. I guess next week I should bring a fan to put onstage & keep me cool.

just another day to celebrate

2006-02-14T14:53:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day or Single Awareness Day, whichever pertains to you! At Starbucks this morning, the male barista asked me if I had any plans for the evening, to which I replied, "I'm going to the gym". The female barista smiled as if she thought it was funny that my big plans for V-day was to go to the gym. As she handed me my drink, she said "have fun at the gym". I'm choosing to spend the day doing what I normally do because that's what I want to do. I'm not sad or lonely, just happy. Happy to be single, happy to be content with who I am, happy to have the friends & family I have, happy for the life God has given me. So yes, it will be a Happy Valentine's Day for me. I hope it is for all of you as well! As an added treat to my day, I may even get to meet Melissa Mae for coffee before she goes back to New Jersey tomorrow.

Good music, good food, good times!

2006-02-13T10:31:00.000-08:00

I had a great few days in San Diego with my long lost friend Laura. I left Thursday afternoon to catch the Jars of Clay concert with Laura at the House of Blues that evening. It was surprisingly good! Of course I love Jars, but had never heard them live & didn't realize that they have new music out. Seriously worth listening to! A few of their new songs are old hymns redone Jars of Clay style. We also heard Sarah Groves who has an awesome, unique voice! I want to check out some of her music too! Anyway, I stayed in SD till Saturday & we managed to get in a few movies, lots of good eating at Sushi Ito, Chipotle, Adals & Cheesecake factory, lots of shopping, & just hanging out. Laura wanted to do the shopping, but somehow I did all the spending & she came home empty handed. I guess I feel like every time I go to SD I'm on a little vacation, so I like to splurge. Oh well... I guess it was a Valentine's present to myself. Thanks Laura for a great time! I can't wait until I actually live in San Diego!

Much Better

2006-02-08T13:38:00.000-08:00

God knows what He is doing! I spent all of yesterday with a group of Youth Pastors from the Southwest Region of NYI. It was such a great time of fellowship even through the business we had to accomplish. Being with those men & one other woman helped encourage me & remind me why God has me in Youth ministry right now. There's just something about fellowship with other believers who are wanting to serve & actively serving God.

To make matters worse!

2006-02-06T11:51:00.000-08:00

I just found out that the Tithe & giving reports that I spent about 7 hours working on this week are all wrong! ALL 100 of them are missing 3 months of contributions! I have to first enter those 12 or more missing weeks of giving into the program and then reprint all of the reports & change the totals on all the cover letters! Then I have to fold & stuff them. Did I mention that I'm already overwhelmed & that I'm supposed to go to meetings all week & then spend a day or 2 in San Diego?! Guess I better cancel something.

Overwhelmed

2006-02-06T11:14:00.000-08:00

Not like the worship song... I'm completely overwhelmed with too much responsibility. I feel like I can't even be myself because I'm so busy. There are NYI events being cancelled because people aren't taking control & I get stuck picking up the pieces. But I'm so busy that those pieces just get dropped. I guess I'm asking for prayer. I have too much going on & I'm not being productive in anything. I feel totally overwhelmed.

Chaos

2006-02-06T09:38:00.000-08:00

I have so much to do this week that I don't really even have time to write about it. I have Regional District Presidents Meetings starting tonight and ending at lunch on Wednesday. Luckily it is in Ontario and I don't have to fly anywhere or get a hotel. Thursday I'm driving to San Diego for a concert with Laura and depending on my work load, will stay Friday as well. Better get crackin! Very busy and a little anxious.

Celebrate Love

2006-02-01T14:16:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day is coming soon and I've been thinking about how I should celebrate. The point of this holiday is to celebrate love. So what do you do if you don't have a significant other to celebrate with? Well, here are some ideas I've come up with. Feel free to share any other ideas!

-Celebrate with friends that you love, specifically single friends.
-Enjoy the day & splurge on yourself & celebrate being single!
-Wallow in self pity & lament about being single.

I'm leaning towards the first two. I am seriously enjoying being single right now because I know that it is what God wants for me.

My Addictions

2006-01-30T13:06:00.000-08:00

Yes, I have many addictions, and it's something that I really need to work on. I pray that I can make a fresh start in August when I become a full-time student. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

-Television
-Myspace & blogs
-Coffee! (particularly Starbucks coffee!)
-Sweets (especially chocolate!)
-Sleep (oh how I wish I could just sleep the day away)

No use in waiting until August! For starters, I think it's time for a lesson in time management. That may help...

cookies, coffee, friends & WAX!

2006-01-27T10:18:00.000-08:00

We had a great candle party last night! We laughed a lot, were loud and abnouxious at times (okay, maybe it was just me), and we just generally had a good time together. Kim, the candle lady, said she had a lot of fun with us. If anyone missed the party, you can still order until Monday or Tuesday.

Blessings

2006-01-26T13:47:00.000-08:00

Jules called me today and we talked for a few minutes. I got to tell her about going to PLNU for sure & that I plan to major in Biblical Studies. She reminded me that she majored in Biblical Studies and that she still has all her text books from just a few years ago. I may be able to use some of her books instead of buying new ones because PLNU teaches "in the Wesleyan tradition" & she graduated from a Wesleyan University. That would be great if she has books that I need! Besides being encouraged by my conversation with her, I was blessed to talk to my niece McKyah. She actually carried on a conversation with me saying "Hi", "baby" (after I said "Hi Baby!"), and "bye bye". What a cutie!

God provides!

2006-01-25T13:51:00.000-08:00

I just received confirmation from a contact and friend at PLNU that the school is giving me the Pastor's Child Discount! He talked with the appropriate people in charge & pleaded my case & they said YES! That's 25% off tuition every year! Praise the Lord! The requirements are that the student has to be a single (non-married) dependant and no older than 22 at the time of erollment of their 1st year. This is seriously a miracle! God is already providing!

My sister, my friend!

2006-01-23T11:53:00.000-08:00

I finally copied a bunch of pictures from my dad's computer onto mine. I can't believe that this picture was taken over 2 years ago at Julia's Wedding! The beautiful backround is from the Point Loma campus at the Alumni Park. I miss my little sister so much! It is a little odd considering we fought like crazy when we were teenagers. I guess that's just what sisters do, especially when they are in the same grade and have some of the same friends. Now she is my best friend and I wish she lived closer than Oklahoma! I am blessed to have such a great friend and sister! At her wedding, Julia gave me a silver plated frame that was engraved "My Maid of Honor, My Sister, My Friend". Now I have a picture to put in the frame!

Christmas in South Carolina

2006-01-20T10:17:00.000-08:00

We took all the kids to nearby park where they got dirty in the clay like dirt and McKyah sat in tar on our walk back to the house. She just didn't want to go the same way the rest of us were going. She wanted to walk the other way. We stopped to pose on this public deck overlooking part of the lake.

Jamie was in the kitchen all week cooking, baking & preparing lots of yummy food for the family. We all pitched in by doing dishes & helping as much as we could. One night, all of the sisters worked to prepare a Turkey dinner Jamie had planned for the next day. We made crab/artichoke dip, bacon wrapped greenbeans, and a few other wonderful dishes! It was a lot of fun & so stinking good!

We took an evening trip to a very big garden with giant sculptures of bugs, fountains & beautiful plants & flowers to see their christmas lights. It was very cold & Jules & I bundled up with our matching magic scarfs. Noah was so excited to be with his cousins & to see the lights & fountains that he didn't pay any attention to his mom saying "be careful around the fountain" and he tripped over the little lip around the fountain & fell right in the freezing water! Julia & I missed the whole thing, but could imagine how funny it was. Tim had to take Noah to the car and run the heater to keep him from getting hypothermia. The rest of us went on with our journey until the power went out as we were standing near a giant ant in the field. Mom was returning from giving Noah her sweatshirt at the car & got lost somewhere in the fountain area all alone in the dark. We all made our way through the darkness, found mom & went home. It was an interesting outing, that's for sure!

The whole family picniced at another park farther from the house that was basically on a hill & was surrounded by water. McKyah played in the swing while Myles chased bubbles around trying to pop them, and the other kids collected shells down by the water. We had a great time together!

More of South Carolina

2006-01-20T10:13:00.000-08:00

Myles got pretty good at chasing the big bubbles. He ran around for a very long time and especially loved popping the really big bubbles.

Auntie Julia & Auntie Corrie gave the boys a bath and thought it would be fun to give them mohawks & alfalfa hair. They had a good time with their aunties!

I miss my little sister & my cutie niece! We ate out only once during the week. After church on Sunday, the gang went to a mexican food place. It was surprisingly good for South Carolina.

When is it going to come?!

2006-01-19T13:38:00.000-08:00

I've been checking the mail every day looking for a letter from the PLNU Admissions office. Letters were scheduled to be mailed on the 15th of January, so i figured I would get something this week letting me know if I was excepted or not. A few others I know already received theirs and my heart grew heavy again today when there wasn't anything of importance in the mail for me. My parents have a bad habit of leaving piles of mail around, so I looked around the house looking for mail that possibly didn't get put in my mail slot. Still nothing! As I sat on the couch eating lunch, I noticed a pile of already opened mail on the floor by my dad's chair that I hadn't looked in yet. On the bottom of the pile, I found my envelope postmarked the 12th! I nervously opened it & read the first word of the letter. It said, "Congratulations!". Woohoo! I've been accepted to PLNU even though my GPA from high school is lower than their minimum requirements. So now I have until May 1st to decide what I'm goig to do & send in my housing & registration info. At least I know for sure that this door is open, but I'm still praying that God will confirm whether or not He wants me to go through it. Whew! Now I really have to get on the ball and get a few things done concerning taxes, financial aid and student loans! Augh!

Not just when I feel like it

2006-01-18T11:36:00.000-08:00

I needed to be reminded to glorify God in every aspect of my life, not just when I am at church or ministering to teens. I need to glorify God in my spare time, when I'm feeling lazy, when I'm feeling lonely, and when I am distracted by life. God is great at sending little reminders like that. We just have to be open & willing to listen. "And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Colossians 3:17 (NIV)

Time for a Party!

2006-01-17T16:40:00.000-08:00

Anyone interested in coming to a candle party? I love PartyLite & after Jeannie's party last night, I decided to have another party. (mostly because I need a replacement piece for my seville that I broke & plan to get it at least half off by doing a show) Let me know if you want to order anything! There are some great new scents for '06! Saydee and I are hosting it at my house next Thursday. All are welcome! Did I mention that I love PartyLite?!

so sad...

2006-01-13T09:41:00.000-08:00

I had to cancel our Retreat for lack of interest. I'm really bummed. I think part of the reason for my youth group is that most of them are jr. high or 9th grade. So when we made it for high school & college only, we left most of them out. Ryan & Debbie's kids just flaked on them with no real explanation. For me, as much as I am disappointed, I feel that it is a blessing in disguise. I have so much to do & now I have a long weekend to accomplish a lot. I can also make it to Friday night Bible study. It has been so long since I was there last and I could really use the spiritual encouragement. I'm taking Saydee with me since she is missing out on the Retreat. It should be really good for her too. The worst part about the whole situation is that there was sure to be snow because of the storm coming tomorrow. Oh well, another time I guess.

It's time to make a few changes

2006-01-11T09:45:00.000-08:00

Change is difficult & I've been through a lot of it over the past few years! But it is time for me to make some changes in my life. I've fallen into a rut and am tired of making excuses. I'm telling you so you can all help me if you choose. The hard part about living at home is that I never feel like a whole person & I feel like I don't have control over anything. I use avoidance to deal with things. Yes, I'm a hard worker when I want to be and I'm allowing myself to be used by God and stretched in many different ministies, but I know that I am not giving my best to God. Since I can't change my living conditions at the moment, I need to make the best of it. I need to take ownership & be responsible for my actions. It is not okay to sit in front of the tv for hours on end avoiding my messy room, laundry that needs to be done, lessons to prepare for youth group, or actions I need to take regarding NYI. I need to just face it head on. The more I get done & the more productive I am, the better I'll feel. Of course I know this... but change is hard! Please pray for me about this. It may not seem like a big deal to you, but it is to me & to God. He wants all of me & all of my time, not just when I'm not vegging or avoiding. I need to work on regular routines & regular quiet time with God. I guess that's my new year's resolution or more like my new life's resolution. That way it is not just about 2006, it is my whole life. Whew... change is good, goals are good. Time for a new me.

Is it really January 06?

2006-01-09T10:19:00.000-08:00

The last few years have been filled with many new experiences & lots of challenges and I'm pretty sure that 2006 will be no exception! We are only just over a week into 2006 & I have already had a lot going on. I finally got the ADNYI Council together for a meeting. Of course I did have some members MIA, but we hadn't met since July & had a lot to plan. I really am looking forward to the next few months; partly because my reign as NYI President is coming to an end in April and also because I love the fellowship with other youth leaders even if it is while we are working hard to finish out the NYI year. I also had a lunch meeting yesterday with a couple in my church to tie up loose ends for our retreat in Big Bear this coming weekend. It should be a real spiritual renewal for our older teens & a fun time meeting new people from another youth group. There is so much that I get to experience this year! The biggest & scariest thing is completely changing my life as I know it & becoming a full time student. I pray that God leads me through 2006 with grace & peace.

It's been a long time!

2006-01-04T11:30:00.000-08:00

I've been so busy! I've been catching up on friend's blogs & returning many phone calls & emails. I got back last night from my week long trip to South Carolina to visit my family and it is good to be back. I very much enjoyed the vacation even though I got sick. I kept my phone off most of the time & hardly sat in front of the tv. We all had a great time playing games, going to a few parks, eating tons of yummy food made by my sister Jamie, and keeping track of the kids. I enjoyed being auntie Corrie for the week. Noah & Myles even cried when I left to the airport. I will have to update with some fun stories & pictures of our Christmas & New Year. There may be a picture from the day I had to stick tissues up my nose to stop all the running! Fun stuff!

Christmas Caroling

2005-12-22T09:29:00.000-08:00

My church went Christmas caroling last night to some of the seniors in our church who don't make it to church very often anymore because of their health. I was very surprised how many teens showed up. At one point, there were more teens than adults! We filled the 24 passenger bus and a few other families met up with us later at one of our stops. I enjoyed it even though I had to make sure the teens were behaving. My favorite stop was my grandma's new apartment at the new senior center in Cerritos. She was so cute! She invited everyone in to see her place. It was a fun night of fellowship with some of my church family.

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-19T09:54:00.000-08:00

The Kleker's annual Christmas party was Saturday night & I had a great time visiting with friends, playing night croquet, winning croquet, seeing people I haven't seen in a while, & singing worship songs with a few Christmas carols. I brought one of my teens, Saydee with me because a few of my other girlfriends couldn't make it. Saydee had a good time with me even though she didn't know anyone. I'm seeing a few good friends that couldn't make it, but all in all, it was a lot of fun! Thanks Jeff & Jeannie!

Tis The Season To Be Busy!

2005-12-16T09:28:00.000-08:00

If you've ever worked in a church office, you would know that the Christmas season is filled with lots of extra work. There are extra services and events that need to be publicized, offering envelope boxes to assign for the new year, year-end giving reports to prepare for tax purposes, and preparing for the office to be closed for a few days for the Holidays. To make things worse, both the boss & I will be gone for just over a week starting the day after Christmas. Before I can go on vacation, I have to make sure I have the bulletin, powerpoint & music notebooks ready for the Sunday we will be gone. Next week is just going to be a very busy week. Even with the added work & stress, I am very excited for our Christmas services, visiting family for Christmas, and above all else, celebrating the true meaning of Christmas!

Too bad I can't tell you the surprise!

2005-12-13T10:17:00.000-08:00

It is getting pretty hard to remember my family's birthdays & anniversaries. Our family just keeps growing and growing which means there are more important dates to remember. So, for Christmas, I'm going to give my siblings, parents & grandparents a gift that will help all of us know when everyone's special days are. Because it's a gift, I don't want to spoil the surprise! I hope everything works out and the surprise turns out great! We will see. Shhh, don't spoil the surprise!

Happy Birthday!

2005-12-09T15:26:00.000-08:00

My niece McKyah turned 1 year old today! She is such a cutie! I can't wait to see her in just a few weeks! She wouldn't talk to me on the phone today. She only wanted to push the buttons and play with the phone. If you ask her how old she is, she will hold up 1 finger. How cute is that?

Holiday Cards

2005-12-07T09:59:00.000-08:00

I read this article about the President's Holiday Card he sent out to 1.4 million people. As much as I disagree with the fact that so many stores are trying their hardest to keep Christmas out of their holiday sales promotions and now a days we have to be so politically correct, is it really necessary to be angry with President Bush over a very generic holiday card? I saw the card first hand 2 nights ago when my dad opened the mail to find a White House Holiday Card sent directly to him from Laura & George Bush. Of course when I looked at it, I thought it was a little too generic coming from a couple who claim to be born again Christians, but think about the other 1.4 million people who recieved the card as well. Do they celebrate Christmas or do they celebrate Kwanza? Are they Jewish? And honestly... regardless of the power the president has, don't you think that he has hundreds of people telling him what to do or not to do? Don't you think there are people in the Whitehouse that don't celebrate Christmas? Just be happy that you received a card directly from the president. We don't know if he & Laura would have rather sent out a card with a picture of the nativity scene, but from the advice & pressure from others chose to please everyone by sending a generic holiday card. Maybe he though Christians would be more forgiving over recieving a generic card more so than others who may have been completely offended by receiving a Christmas focused card. Who knows?

Nor Naz Girls Retreat, Part 1

2005-12-06T10:59:00.000-08:00

The things I learned this weekend on our Girl's Retreat:

The girls aren't very good at charades, yet they wanted to play for hours! This is Saydee acting out "electrocuted". Laura & I just wanted to see her act out something funny.

The girls love silly string and playing practical jokes.

But they don't like cleaning it up. I guess it is our fault for buying the silly string.

We all love to play twister, but it doesn't work well with 5 people! I Also learned that the girls love to "borrow" Laura's camera & take tons of interesting pictures of each other, most of them blurry.

I learned that Allison likes to make up funny nonsense songs with motions & Saydee liked it so much that she wanted to join in.

Nor Naz Girls Retreat, Part 2

2005-12-06T10:53:00.000-08:00

More things I learned on the Retreat:

The girls don't wake up when you take pictures of them sleeping at 4:30 in the morning.

Many of them are afraid of the dark and wouldn't play Hide & Go Seek or Sardines in the dark unless they had a partner. Laura & I learned that they are easily scared when you sneek outside & scratch on the window screen or lightly bang on the wall and that it is fun to scare them.

They have difficulties finding things in the grocery store unless you tell them exactly what to get. "What kind of sliced cheese do you want?" "What kind of soda should we get?"

They like playing spoons, but don't like when they lose.

I learned that the girls are very fun to be with even with the complaining & their need to be constantly entertained.

finishing up in the office

2005-12-02T10:01:00.000-08:00

Laura & I are taking 7 girls up to the mountains in just a few hours. I'm so excited! I love just hanging out with the girls & having fun. There are a good number of girls that I don't know that well, so I am looking forward to breaking the awkward barrier so they are comfortable being around me. There is a 90% chance of rain today in Crestline and about 40% for tomorrow so pray for a safe trip & a great weekend!

I love James

2005-12-01T12:18:00.002-08:00

The book that it... "Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything. If you need wisdom--if you want to know what God wants you to do--ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. They can't make up their minds. They waver back and forth in everything they do." James 1:2-8 (NLT)

snow, fireplace, movies, oh my!

2005-11-30T09:42:00.000-08:00

My girl's retreat is this weekend and I'm looking forward to hopefully playing in the snow, relaxing by the fireplace, watching Christmas movies & just spending time with my youth group girls and Laura. I don't want the weekend to be too structured, but we will spend time praying together & talking about how God wants us to live as Christian girls. I also want the girls to have the opportunity to spend quiet time alone with God away from the distractions of normal every day life. Please pray for us! I pray that my sore throat goes away by then! It is painful!

Family

2005-11-28T13:19:00.000-08:00

Thanksgving was very different for my family this year. There wasn't a full house, there weren't any kids running around, we didn't have to add a 2nd table or extra chairs. It was just me, my mom, my dad & my brother celebrating Thanksgiving together this year. With the Smiths in South Carolina, the Lipscombs in Oklahoma, and the Mixes on their way to visit the Lipscombs in Oklahoma, it was quiet in our house. My mom wanted to forgo the traditional meal & go to my aunt's to celebrate with older cousins who were home for the holidays, but I convinced her that we should continue with our Thanksgiving meal even if it was only the four of us together. In the past, we've tried Thanksgiving breakfast due to some of us having to rush off to the in-laws making sure to visit both sides of the family on the special day. This year, the four of us ate yummy turkey together & enjoyed eachother's company playing a game & then watching a movie. I missed having my sisters, brother's in-law, nieces & nephews together, but I still had a great Thanksgiving. We did get to talk to Jamie & Julia seperately on speaker phone for a little bit & hear about how their day went.

so serine

2005-11-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

(Sky by Dave in Jersey)

What am I thankful for?

2005-11-23T11:57:00.000-08:00

As I ponder that question, I realize that if I really wrote down everything that I am thankful for, I would be writing for a very long time! I am truly blessed in so many ways and it is difficult to think of everything. For my own benefit, I feel I should begin somewhere. What am I thankful for?
-my family (too general, I know, but it's a start)
-great friends that I can share my joys & sorrows with. Friends who will lovingly give advice, pray for me & encourage me.
-the opportunity God has given me to love the teens at my church and on the District & share His love with them & be an example to them.
-God's undying love. His grace, His peace & His guidance He has given me & will continue to give as long as I ask.
-the trials I've been through in life & how my relationship with God has grown because of those difficult times.

what to do, what to do

2005-11-21T13:29:00.000-08:00

It is interesting how many people are totally unaware of how much of a distraction they are during church. Of course this is typical among the teens & children sitting in the service. Let's face it, teens are disrespectful and oblivious to how much their whispers during prayer effect those around them. I honestly feel that it is the responsibility of the parent to teach a child or teen what is appropriate & inappropriate behavior during church. One problem we face is that their parents don't ever come to church? I guess it then becomes my job as the Youth Minister to lovingly share with the teens that they may be distracting those who really want to listen & worship. Before I pray in Youth Group, I always encourage my teens to talk to God or even listen in agreement to my prayer and even if they don't feel like talking to God, they need to at least sit quietly so they don't distract those who do want to pray. But what do you do when a parent is totally oblivious to their child's disruptiveness? I'm not talking about a child who is old enough to know better, I'm talking about a very cute baby who is about 6 months old cooing through the whole sermon. Instead of taking him to the nursery, the parents give the baby a bulletin to keep them busy, but that just makes matters worse & everyone in the Sanctuary (including the pastor) is distracted with not only baby sounds, but the rumpling of paper? For those who love children, it is very cute, but then you are thinking about how cute the kid is instead of what God is trying to teach you through the sermon. Now, don't think that I am a baby nazi or against children in the service in any way. On the contrary, I love children and I have not had much of a problem with them joining in the church service. I think it is great & I encourage it for those who are at least old enough to understand that they are sitting in church. I also very much understand that parents don't want to send their babies to the nursery when they are newborns. When I have children, I will probably keep them in the service with me for a few months, but as soon as they start being a distraction, I will either stand in the foyer with my child or take them to the Nursery. Anyway, it is a difficult position to take, but if it were just me who was distracted, I would just deal with it, but when it is obvious that many people in the church are distracted, what do you do? It is also interesting that older adults will jump all over teens who are disruptive, but they don't say a word to a parent who's baby is disruptive.

Fun with scissors

2005-11-19T20:32:00.000-08:00

Jill & I went the movies this afternoon to see Elizabethtown. It was very cute & I'm glad that her husband, Mike, told her to go even though he hadn't slept at all after working last night & had to take care of the kids while we were gone. On the way home, we drove through El Pollo to pick up food for the family and I stayed & ate with them. While we were gone though, Jill's youngest took a pair of scissors to his hair while Mike was napping. Now he has a very short buzz cut to disquise the patches of missing hair. I'm glad that Jill & I got to go out together. It's been a while since we've done something without the kids.

I'm alergic to my teens!

2005-11-17T15:58:00.000-08:00

Last night I had a sneezing attack up in the youth room while we were hanging out before my message. I was even having problems while up on stage speaking to everyone. My eyes were beginning to get itchy & I still felt the urge to sneeze. When I asked how many of the teens had animals, all I saw was hands in the air as they began listing all there animals by name. Now I know why I was having allergy problems. I'm alergic to my teens!

Christmas Music & Holiday Drinks

2005-11-16T12:47:00.000-08:00

There's nothing like Christmas music & Pumpkin Spice Soy Lattes from Starbucks to help get me in the mood for the Holidays! The Holiday season reminds me of family, giving to others, and celebrating the birth of my Savior among other enjoyable Holiday memories & activities. Growing up with 4 siblings meant lots of hustle & bustle around our house. I'm blessed to be able to look back & reminisce about so many great family moments during the holidays.

Why me?

2005-11-15T09:27:00.000-08:00

I took the day off from my "church job" yesterday and went down to PLNU in San Diego for a planning meeting that falls under my "NYI job". For the 1st time ever, the USA/CANADA NYI are having a Retreat for Nazarene Youth Pastors all over the USA. This is the trial year to see how "Sanctuary" goes and how the NYI leadership can improve to make it better. I am so honored to even be asked to help with the planning of this Retreat. I met with the USA/CANADA NYI Director, Dave Curtiss, the Regional NYI President, Charles Broadhead, the Youth Pastor from San Diego 1st Church located on the PLNU Campus, and a Youth Pastor new to my district who used to be the District President of another District. Wow! Those names & titles may mean nothing to you, but the first 2 are very important leaders. Dave is down to earth & very friendly. He is also very aware of the growth in numbers of Women Youth Pastor's over the last few years and wants to make sure that we are recognized & that our thoughts & ideas are heard. I am so blessed to be a part of something so great! Here is something for me to think about... If I move out of state, will I still have these opportunities & connections? Oh yeah, while I was there, I also had my interview with Jenny, my PLNU Admissions Counselor. I'm still seeking God's will & continuing to be in prayer about school, so we will see.

Attack of the KILLER Roach

2005-11-12T22:15:00.000-08:00

Working late in the office with Saydee... saw a huge roach... freaked out... went back to work... saw roach from the corner of my eye trying to run across the room to safety... Saydee jumped on a chair... I jumped on the roach... the roach is dead... we can now get back to work.

Life After Death & Taxes

2005-11-11T14:24:00.000-08:00

I like that song by Relient K, but when you have 3 years of taxes to do & it turns out you owe a little bit on each year plus penalties, is there really life after taxes?

My Girls

2005-11-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast my nieces are growing! Mckyah talks to me on the phone saying "hi" and "uh-oh". She also signs the word cat for me even though I can't see. Lexi is still not much of a talker on the phone and I have to ask her tons of questions to keep the conversation going, but I'm thankful for the times I do get to talk to her.

Get Smart

2005-11-09T10:03:00.000-08:00

With all this talk about school & preparing everything I need to apply to College, I'm reminded of the type of student I was in high school; not very good. It definitely wasn't because of smarts. I am very smart, but I hated homework and had not so good study skills. I had a lot of A's & B's in the classes that I enjoyed & liked the teacher, but those C's & D's in Math & a few F's in science weren't very helpful to my total GPA. Of course, it has been over 10 years since I was a freshman in high school and I am a completely different person. I'm a hard worker & the difference between then & now is that I WANT to go to school. Back then, I HAD to go to school. The interesting thing is that if I had applied to PLNU back then, I may not have been accepted, but now that I have so much Ministry experience & have Nazarene Pastors, full time Youth Pastors & my District Superintendent supporting me & giving me recommendations, I should have no problem. They will probably have to accept me on a probationary basis because of my GPA, but I won't have any problem applying myself this time. I know that this is what God wants me to do & I'm going to do it with integrity & good work ethics.

What is it with people?

2005-11-08T17:08:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had the joy of visiting the Records office for Long Beach Unified School District to request my transcripts from high school. The people weren't very friendly on the phone or in person. I just smiled, said thank you a lot & when I left told them to have a nice day. Last night, I met 3 NYI Council members for a dinner planning meeting and our waitress didn't seem to be having a good day. She brought a crispy chicken sandwich to Kristina instead of grilled chicken. Now Kristina is a nice girl & kindly asked for the grilled chicken sandwich that she ordered. Instead of nicely apologizing for her mistake & quickly getting a new sandwich, the waitress basically argued saying "I thought you ordered the crispy chicken" and making it seem like it was Kristina's fault. Besides that, she never asked us how we were doing or filled our drinks. We had to flag her down to get refills. What is up with people? We were totally nice & friendly to her, not rude people. Today, I had the joy of visiting the Social Security Office in Norwalk to get my name changed where the problem wasn't with the employees, but with the people waiting. I had to listen to this lady talk really loudly about lame stuff that none of us wanted to hear. She was so loud... at one point saying "I just become prejudice and I don't like being that way, but I can't help it since I've moved to California." She said that people who come to America should learn to speak English... blah blah blah. I think she just felt very uncomfortable in the room filled with mostly Hispanics. Either way, she was lame & should have kept her mouth shut. She even told the friend she was with about a conversation she had with an asian lady that didn't speak much english & she basically told her she should go back to her own country. What an interesting few days.

There may be something wrong

2005-11-08T10:16:00.000-08:00

For some odd reason, I've been sleeping about 10 hours a night. Not that I want to, I just can't get up. Now, I have to admit that I am one who needs a lot of sleep, but more like 8 hours not 10! I feel very lathargic & tired as well. It seems like I can't function until I have some caffeine in the morning and then need another pick me up mid-day. I think maybe getting to bed early will help a little.

Preview Days

2005-11-07T11:34:00.000-08:00

Saydee & I had so much fun in San Diego this weekend for preview days at PLNU. Besides seeing the beautiful PLNU Campus & sitting in on the great praise & worship Chapel, we had a lot of fun off campus.

We spent lots of time at Starbucks & Adal's entertaining ourselves & laughing a lot!

We both had a lot of fun visiting many different friends. The whole weekend revolved around eating somehow or another. It is very interesting... I went to Preview Days to get Saydee interested in the school & I left planning on applying myself! I talked to a few friends in Admissions & feel confident that they want me there & will make exceptions & work with me because of my age. All in all, it was a great weekend & I'm so glad that I went!

On my way out

2005-11-03T09:48:00.000-08:00

I'm off to Point Loma Nazarene University Preview Days with Saydee. I'm looking forward to doing something out of the norm & visiting friends while at it.

Time for drastic Measures

2005-11-02T12:33:00.000-08:00

I shared my heart & passion for Youth Ministry at our Church Board Meeting last night. Hopefully they listened as I shared the reality of the struggles that our teens are going through & how Youth Ministry in 2005 is so different than the past. Anyway, they decided with guidance from my pastor (aka Dad) to grant me a local ministers license & also offered to give me a little monitary compension for my work with the teens as well as put me in charge as the Youth Minister for the next 6 months before leaving for school. Although I've been working with the teens, this position calls for more responsibilities. I look forward to molding a youth ministry at our church that is successful so that when I leave, we have capable people with the heart for youth in place to continue loving these teens & guiding them. Some ideas that I'm praying about: starting a Youth Worship team to get the teens involved & active in Worship. Getting small groups going outside of the normal Wednesday & Sunday services to meet the teens where they are at & build relationships. Of course all this calls for help from people who have a passion to change lives & help teens grow spiritually. Please pray for me through all this & that God prepares hearts of the people in my church to step up & help. So what are the drastic measures I'm talking about? I have so much on my plate with other ministries & jobs that I need to give some things up so that I have more time for my local church & that I have more time to work on staying in tune with God & His will. The most logical thing for me is TV! Right now, it controls my life & is an outlet of avoidance. Maybe singing in the praise team as well since that takes me away from the teens on Sundays. Hmmm... what else?

Passionate? You think?

2005-10-31T09:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my nephew Aron's birthday party and I got to see my sister's new apartment all decorated & cute. They've come such a long way from the few years with no living room furniture because they didn't feel it was necessary. My brother Jeremy and I stayed a while after everyone left. He knitted (or was it crocheting) while I talked to Marc & Christi about the Youth Group at church. They just started coming back to our church and pretty soon, my nephew Kevin will be in the Youth Group! Augh! Well, needless to say, there are many things lacking in our youth department and our church really doesn't pay any attention to the need. I guess "out of sight, out of mind" is their thinking. "Oh... Rafael & Corrie are taking care of everything... we don't need to hire anyone..." Of course, those are my words in their mouths, but that's how I feel. My brother-in-law, Marc, is so passionate about it, but he knows that he isn't the one to work with teens. He says himself that he lacks the important relationships with the teens. Well, the sad thing is that many people don't have that ability and Adults don't realize the importance. You can't just have someone who shows up on Sundays to teach Sunday School or on just does a game & a lesson on Wednesday nights. You can easily find someone to just show up to do that! What our church & every other church for that matter needs is someone who has the heart to get to know these teens and build strong relationships with them so they feel comfortable asking important questions & opening up about struggles they are having. Where the teens will listen to what you have to say because they know you care! This makes so much sense to me! Why don't other people get it? While together with a few hundred youth pastors in September, our speaker said that if you haven't stepped foot on a public high school campus in the last 3 years, you have NO idea what these teens are going through. I almost want to go to our church board meeting & say... out of our 20 teens, I can tell you that at least 3 of them are dealing with pre-marital sex and at least 2 of them are dealing with thoughts of suicide. Just in our youth group alone we have many who aren't even raised by their parents. We have girls who haven't had a Father in their lives and are looking to guys to fill that void. I know that the adults in our church don't want to hear how bad things are in these teens lives, but maybe they need a wakeup call. They need to know that providing a Sunday School teacher is not going to cut it! They need someone who has the heart, the skills & the help from other leaders to work with our teens. Too bad our church isn't willing to put their money where their mouths are!

Fall back

2005-10-29T23:59:00.000-07:00

I just got home from babysitting and it's time for bed, and the great thing about tonight is that we gain an hour because of the time change. So even though the clock says midnight, it is really 11:00. Woohoo... I'm still going to get 8 hours of sleep!

Big plans for the weekend

2005-10-28T11:51:00.000-07:00

What an exciting weekend I have ahead of me! I get to babysit tonight & tomorrow night. At least I'll make a little extra money. Other than that, I have no other plans. Hopefully I'll have time for relaxing & doing whatever else I want to do.

No longer an airplane

2005-10-25T16:04:00.000-07:00

I went home for a late lunch & was greeted by an envelope in my mail slot addressed to me. I recognized the writing as my own & was relieved to finally have proof of my divorce. It was signed (actually stamped with a name) by some random judge stating that my maiden name is officially restored. Even though I've been waiting for a very long time for the finality of it all, it doesn't make me feel any different. Maybe because I've been in a state of limbo for over 3 years and it still seems the same. Maybe in a few weeks or once I date someone I'll feel it. I'm not in a rush though. All in God's timing. I'm content with who I am & who God is molding me to be!

Glad it's over, but it has just begun...

2005-10-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

Despite the gloomy weather on Saturday, we made almost $600 at our Mission Day Car Wash. I was very proud of our teens & youth leaders who gave up their Saturday to work. After the car wash, we had a service where good friends Jeff & Tim led worship with the help of another friend, Jim. They did a great job and it went very well! Thanks guys for blessing us! I gave a message, which was a little nerve racking. It was definitly a good start to help be more confortable speaking in front of a larger crowd than my own youth group. I was very nervous & I hope that my message came across clear. I know I can do better & I'm excited to start schooling that will help me become a better teacher, preacher & minister no matter what I'm doing. It's funny how God gave me a message that I needed myself. God is bigger than your past, God is bigger than your excuses & God is bigger than your obstacles. God can use you wherever you are if you are available & obedient to His call. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13 I love how God does that!

Long day tomorrow

2005-10-21T14:49:00.000-07:00

Our Mission Day for the ADNYI is tomorrow. My council missed a meeting in September & trying to reschedule has been like pulling teeth! So I got stuck planning this event. I'm not good at planning & organizing things like this. Give me a task & tell me what to do and I'll do it, but to plan the whole thing? No way! I'm sure everything will be great. We are washing cars to raise money for Hurricane relief at 2 of the churches nearby, then we have a short service together. Pray that everything goes smoothly & it all turns out great!

Isn't she the cutest?!

2005-10-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

My niece, McKyah Faith, is such a cutie! I sure do miss that little girl. Even though I was lucky enough to see her last month, she keeps growing so much, I can't wait to see her again!
Most of the Butcher clan will be together for Christmas in South Carolina. I'm so excited to see all the kids & the Smith's new home. The Mixes won't be able to make the trip. At least they live nearby & I see them often. Have I ever mentioned that I love my family?! I'm excited for Christmas!
Okay... just one more! Can you tell that I'm a proud Auntie?!

"I laughed, I cried, it moved me Bob"

2005-10-19T10:10:00.000-07:00

I had 4 girls at my girl's discipleship last night instead of the usual 1 or 2. It was fun, even though we had trouble focusing on our book. We ended up talking about girls stuff & I gave the usual (half joking, half serious) advice of not dating till age 25, we laughed, one cried, it was great! Kaycee was the one who cried. None of us are sure exactly why... maybe lack of sleep, maybe from laughter, maybe crazy emotions, or maybe just because the thought of me moving away to Colorado is too much for her to handle. We just laughed it off & I told her I would tell her more about it later. It was a good night of fellowship, even for me. By the way, if you didn't recognize it, my title quote is from Larry the Cucumber in a Veggie Tales episode.

In a Funk

2005-10-18T10:51:00.000-07:00

Some extra prayer from my friends & family would be very helpful right! I've been very lathargic & sleeping a lot lately and avoiding everything by vegging in front of the TV. I want to break the cycle, I really do. I honestly think that the devil is trying to discourage me & get me down. With everything in my life changing at the moment (which always seems to be happening) and really starting to focus toward God's plan for me in ministry, satan isn't too happy that I'm whole heartedly doing what God wants me to do.

Not of this world!

2005-10-17T11:17:00.000-07:00

Do you ever feel like you don't fit into this world? I've been feeling very uncomfortable in my surroundings a lot lately. Kids & teenagers are so disrespectful & are not being taught by their parents the proper way to act. Adults are even worse! It's funny & very coincidental that my dad's sermon yesterday was titled "Rated G living in a rated X world". That is exactly how I feel! It is hard to remember that we aren't supposed to be comfortable here on earth. God has something bigger for us! An eternity with Him! So until then, I will never fit in here. It's even hard around "good" people, because they are still missing the point & don't always see this horrible, corrupt world as I see it. On a side note, I went to Knott's Scary Farm the other night with Laura & 2 of her friends from work. I had fun being startled & surprised a few times. I could have done with out the somewhat crass stage show that included jokes that were just beyond inappropriate, the 14 year old kids making out in front of us in line to get in (seriously... it was bad), the 8 teens cutting in line right in front of us, and the drunk or stoned teenage boy who fell right in front of me in a very crowded area. I guess the fact that I was a little cranky that night didn't help things either.

Will it ever end?

2005-10-14T14:34:00.000-07:00

6 weeks... no papers... time to call the court house... 1 to 6 weeks? Yeah right!

Good question...

2005-10-13T10:39:00.000-07:00

Last night at Youth Group, one of my teens, Sam, asked something to the effect of "how are we supposed to know it is God speaking to us when He doesn't actually talk out loud to us like He did in Bible times?". Good question... We were talking about having faith and read Hebrews 11 that recounted examples of some of God's people who remained faithful even when it didn't make sense. There was Noah who listened to God & built an Arc even though it hadn't rained for a very long time. He was faithful even though people mocked him & made fun of him. There was Abraham & Sarah who wanted a child. Both were too old to have children & Sarah was barren, yet God promised them that they would have a son. It didn't happen right away either. They had to wait years! But because they had faith that God would do as he promised, they were blessed with "descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore". And what about Moses leading his people out of Egypt and out of bondage & slavery under Pharoah's hand? Moses, who couldn't even speak clearly, had faith and listened to God even though he felt unworthy & unable to do what God was asking. So back to the question... How do we know when God is speaking to us? For starters, God speaks to us through the reading of His Word. We can consider the Bible as God's thoughts. He speaks in a still small voice that is only audible if you are open & willing to hear it. You have to be seeking & listening. God speaks through other people. He uses other people to encourage or direct you. But seriosly, how do you know it is God? That's the point... it is FAITH! One dictionary defines faith as this; "Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence.". So, how can Sam hear God's voice & know that it is God & not Satan trying to trip him up?

Junk in the Trunk

2005-10-11T14:49:00.000-07:00

Last night I went through my file box of financial junk & important paperwork. I guess the box wasn't so important to me considering I hadn't opened it for 3 years. While going through all the junk and seeing all the late payment notices, bounced checks, overdraft charges, a bunch of pay stubs from all the different jobs that David had & couldn't keep, etc., I felt a sense of relief knowing that it is all behind me. I'm reminded why financial responsiblity is high on my list of qualities in a man. He doesn't have to have a lot of money, he just needs to know how to handle the money he does has & be responsible with it. On a side note, I found the apprasal on my wedding ring. It apprased for $3050. Of course, if I sold it or traded it in, I would probably only get half that or less.

Nazarene Bible College

2005-10-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

What do I like about NBC? Every student is studying for Ministry. It is more of an Adult School for people who get a call to ministry a little later in life. If it all works out right, I can start this Spring and/or Summer by taking online courses so by the time I start full-time in the fall, I would have some General classes out of the way. By living in Colorado, I would be less than 11 hours away from my sister in Oklahoma which makes it easier to visit her on breaks. A guy at my church encouraged me to check it out saying that it would get me "out of here" and I'd become more open to Ministry Opportunities out side of Southern California if that's where God leads. I've been encouraged by many people that it is a great school.

The Unknown

2005-10-10T11:52:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a little anxious today. There are so many unknowns about my future. I know that God has a plan for me & I don't have to worry, but it is all too easy to begin to worry.

"Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD is the one who goes before you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor forsake you."
Deuteronomy 31:8 (New Living Translation)

A little disapointing

2005-10-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

I went online last night to request an Application from PLNU and the site asked me what my Academic Interest was. The problem? No where among the list did they have anything of interest to me! I find it odd that a Private Nazarene University wouldn't have Ministry or Biblical Studies listed. I guess those things aren't "Academic" enough. Whatever the reason, I find it a little disapointing. It shows me that their focus is more on getting non-ministry minded students to come to their school. Don't get me wrong, you can go on to be a Pastor or Youth Pastor from PLNU, you just have to major in Christian Education with an emphasis on Youth Ministry or Biblical Studies with an emphasis in your specific ministry desire. OWU is definitely more ministry minded in the majors & courses they offer. I guess it is time to look more into Nazarene Bible College in Colorado.

Is your brain getting tired?

2005-10-07T11:19:00.000-07:00

It's great to have friends & family that I can talk to about school options. Everyone has been so helpful. I guess I'm not one to hold in thoughts & figure stuff out on my own, so I'm blessed to have such a great support system of friends & family that care about me & are open to listen & advise. Here's more thinking about school... hope I don't bore you!

I have thought about Oklahoma Wesleyan University & am highly considering it. I've been dreaming with my sister about moving to OK for a month or even a Summer & living with them temporarily. Now with going to school, that is an option, not just to visit, but to actually go to school there. I have aunts, uncles, cousins & a sister who all went there because it is a great Christian University. I think my grandparents or maybe my aunt or uncle worked there. If I remember correctly, my uncle proposed to my aunt in the tower there. :) Some things to think about... they are clear in their info online that they do make exceptions for unconventional students who aren't the typical college age for living off campus. The cost of living is very low along with gas & food. It is possible to arrange to live with my sister while there. Of course, there are things to work out so I don't intrude on their lives, but Julia is already trying to convince me to go. It would be less expensive than some of my other options especially with not living on campus & having a meal plan. So, there are lots of good things about OWU.

What would you do?

2005-10-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

Okay friends, here is some of my thinking. I want to get a BA that will prepare me for Youth Ministry. I could get a BA in Christian Education with an Emphasis on Youth Ministry or I can get a BA in Biblical Studies. At this point, I feel that God is calling me to some sort of ministry and it is obvious that I'm very passionate about Youth & College Age. Anyway, here are more of my thoughts... Whatever schooling I end up doing, I really would like to actually "go away". I know that for me, it would be difficult to go to a Jr. College or to go school close by because it would be hard for me to focus. I'm worried about getting distracted by so many local ministry needs at my church & on the District, etc. Knowing my personality, I could very easily get sucked in trying to fix things which would distract me from school. Also, with my grandma possibly moving in to my parent's house, I need to find a place to live, so going to a school that I can live on campus would be good & also beneficial for keeping me motivated and in the "school" mind set that I have not had for so long. I also don't want to worry too much about housing & having to pay for an apartment. Living on campus would help aleviate that a little because food & housing would be included in tuition, loans & financial aid. Of course, that means I'll be paying student loans for a long time. At first, I wasn't thinking about going to a 4 year school because I would like to finish quickly becuase of my age, but the more I think about it. I've always said that I would like to learn more & be more educated in other areas than just Ministry. Like grammar, foreign language, Geography, etc. So with all these thoughts, what would you do?