One Year
Just found this blog that I meant to post.. well back in April I guess...
Well... it's super hard to believe but it's been over ONE year since I took that leap of faith and walked on board that plane in Grand Rapids with a one way ticket to Colorado.
When I look back over this past year, I am simply at a loss. I can't believe it went so quickly...But I also can't believe that all that happened actually happened in only ONE year. Haha...
Here's a quick list of some of the things that have happened in the past year (April 2014-April 2015)
Well... it's super hard to believe but it's been over ONE year since I took that leap of faith and walked on board that plane in Grand Rapids with a one way ticket to Colorado.
When I look back over this past year, I am simply at a loss. I can't believe it went so quickly...But I also can't believe that all that happened actually happened in only ONE year. Haha...
Here's a quick list of some of the things that have happened in the past year (April 2014-April 2015)
- Traveling to India twice for work
- Bouncing through the Indian jungle looking for a tiger
- Traveling to California to share about Indigenous Ministries
- Sharing Indigenous Ministries at the IFCA Convention in Colorado Springs
- Raising sponsorships for the kids in our Children's Home
- Updating the Bible College and Children's Home sponsors
- Using my passion of photography for ministry
- Camping in the heart of Colorado Rockies
- Star gazing on my back deck (I have the BEST host parents while I'm raising my support!)
- Going to my first ever Renaissance Fair with my girlfriends
- Being blessed with some of the BEST friends a women could ask for
- Learning a good bit about bee-keeping
- Getting stung 17 times while learning about bee-keeping... NOT the fun part.. haha
- Road-tripping alone to Iowa for my cousin's wedding
- Being in Michigan in July (2014) for my sister's wedding
- Celebrating the holidays with new friends
- Hiking the Manitou Incline
Needless to say, I've been really blessed. For those of you who have walked closely with me over this past year, you know that it was hard to leave Michigan. There were a lot of unknowns... But I don't think I could have written a better adventure. God has been SO good. I've learned SO much. About God, about me, about how to do this wonderfully awesome and challenging job that God has given me...about this wonderful and scary adventure called life.
It's been a journey.. I've learned a lot... Top ten personal things I've learned this last year:
(not necessarily in any particular order)
- Exercise can change your attitude on life. Literally, your perspective on ALL of life can change after a hardcore hour at the gym.
- Don't skip your personal alone time with God... It's. Just. Not. Worth. It. Trust me... when you're involved in ministry its sometimes easy to think that because you're serving God you have this great and awesome connection to God.. and you do...But what you DO for God does not and can not replace your relationship WITH God.
- Sometimes your best plan of action is to pray about it and take a nap.
- Putting in extra time at the beginning of ANY project to plan it all out is WORTH. EVERY. MINUTE. or hour. Whatever the time... it's totally worth it.
- Over-communicating is WAY better than under-communicating. every. time.
- When in doubt about something... DON'T assume... ASK! (I don't think I can stress this one enough... haha...)
- Never underestimate the power of a simple prayer. Praying with someone for something they just told you about is WAY more encouraging in that moment than just saying that you'll be praying about it... following this short prayer up with a handwritten note a few days later is also very meaningful.
- Be true to your word. Don't make promises you either don't intend to keep or somehow might not be able to keep. If you say you'll do it... then do it. Follow through is an admirable quality.
- Actively listen. I mean really listen, to their words, the facial expressions, their body language. People tell us a lot if only we hear it we can really be used of God to care for the Body of Christ.
- Last but not least...make time to be alone. If you have a hobby that you really enjoy... make time for it. When I make time for my hobbies (journaling, crocheting, reading, walking alone) I know that I am all the better for it...(i.e. it helps me hang on to the shred of sanity that I have left...) and so are those around me I think... ;-)
Thanks for reading, my friends. There feels like there's more to say.. that I can't possibly have summed all of last year into one short post...
All for now,
Lou
Ps. 18:29
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