The Battle

Sorry it has been forever since I have updated, but life here in VA Beach has been SUPER busy. My days have been filled with working during the day, various meetings at night and little things in between. So needless to say I haven’t even touched a computer for the past week, which in some ways has been very refreshing.

To give you a little update on some of the bigger things of project, I’ll start with The Battle. The Battle is a somewhat choreographed fight between “Good” and “Evil”. So the men dressed up and made their armor and weapons out of cardboard, and the women dressed up in their assigned colors (Red=Good, Blue=Evil), and then we marched to the beach and this is where the battle began. There were hundreds of people surrounding us to watch this battle, and so after the battle ended, the last man standing gave an inspiring speech about what it takes to live forever and be on the side left standing. After this we surveyed people on what they thought about the battle and got to share the gospel with some of the people watching, and some people even made a decision that night to ask Jesus into their lives. The Battle was also very community building for us as we joined together to spread God’s Word in and effective way.

Over the last three and a half weeks here the Lord has taught me a lot about Himself as well as taught me a lot about myself. I am excited to see what else the Lord wants to do in my life this summer and can’t wait to share with you guys as he does : )

Prayers have been answered

I GOT A JOB!! I got an offer at a dog/cat spa and resort as a kennel attendant! Now, I know it is not the most glamorous of jobs, but after submitting countless applications and receiving many, “no’s”, it’ll do : ). I have worked at a dog kennel before so I should be able to fit in right away. I am also working with another student from project named D.J., so it should be a lot of fun working with someone I already know as well.

Now that the hunt is over, I am relaxing and praising the Lord for this sweet opportunity :)

Thank you for your prayers J

On the Hunt...

Job hunt that is ;)

No, I did not get the job at the field house, which was a TOTAL bummer, but I have realized that it’s not where the Lord would like to place me this summer. He has other plans for me, and I am trusting in His plan. However, I have been up and down the board walk and everywhere in between, and no one seems to be hiring. The economy is suffering, which does not help my hunt. I have submitted about a dozen applications thus far, in store and online, and now all I can do is call back about my application status and wait. Wait for that call that offers me a job. I may go a little further inland to see who is hiring, but I hear there is not much luck there either. No worries though, this is just one bump in the road of many, on this amazing adventure.

            Through this, seemingly never ending, job hunt though, the Lord has taught me a few things. He has definitely humbled me, teaching me that finding a job won’t always be easy, as it has been for me in the past. He has also taught me to trust in Him and in His plan for my life more. Lately, this has been tough for me. I know that the Lord has a good and faithful plan for my life, but I often find myself thinking, “Well what if it doesn’t end up like I want it to?” or I ask the Lord “Can I just have control of this part of my life, and you can have this other part instead?”. But in this job hunt the Lord has led me to lean on Him and to trust His plan for my life, instead of my own.

            As I continue this search, I find myself reflecting over and over again on this verse:
“And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose for them” Romans 8:28

I ask for prayer as I continue this search, and that I will continue to lean on the Lord and follow the plan that He has for me this summer.

Emotional Rollercoaster

In my last post it was brought to my attention that not everyone reading my blog knows what I am doing in Virginia Beach. So for those of you who don’t know what I am doing this summer in Virginia Beach, I will be staying down here for 10 weeks (June5-August10) this summer with an organization called Campus Crusade for Christ, on a Summer Project with 70+ student and staff from Crusades all around the region. What this summer project consists of is, obtaining a job, where I will work full time and get to know my co workers and share the gospel in any way I can with them. We will also be going out into the community to build relationships with the people here and spread God’s Word within the community. It is a time for growing closer in my walk with the Lord as well as sharing the love of Christ with others : ) We also have small group Bible studies and weekly worship meeting to strengthen our relationship with the Lord.

 I have been in VA Beach for a couple of days now and am feeling SO many mixed emotions. A lot of emotions that I can't explain, but emotions none the less. I am so very excited to be here and to find out what the Lord has in store for me this summer, but at the same time I am very overwhelmed and anxious. My anxiety mostly comes from being away from home for 10 weeks, but I keep reminding myself of the amazing things that the Lord will be teaching me this summer, and I am SO grateful to be here. We have been pretty busy the first couple of days, and as you can imagine, being very busy and being awake for 48 hours straight doesn't really mix well, so to say the least I was overwhelmed by the busyness and the newness o fit all the first couple of days. Most of all though, I am feeling excitement as I embark on this new adventure and grow closer to the Lord. I am excited to make lifelong friends and learn invaluable lifelong lessons from Our Creator.

As I asked in my previous post, would you, if you would like, pray for me on this journey. Right now, I would specifically ask for prayer with feeling anxious and overwhelmed in this new environment, as well as praying that I would dive head first into this adventure and soak in every little bit of it. Pray that my heart and mind would stay focused on Jesus and what the Lord is teaching me in my time here, and I would be able to continue to grow from it when I am gone. One more prayer that I would ask you to lift, is for job opportunities for me. I have applied to quite a few places, and specifically, I will be getting a call from the VA Beach Field House tomorrow (Wednesday) about a camp counselor position that would be an incredible opportunity to have.

Thank you once again for journeying alongside of me in this crazy thing called life : )

God Bless!

Here goes nothin'...

Welp, never thought I'd have one of these things, but I figured it would be nice to keep you all updated while I am in Virginia Beach for the next 10 weeks!

Now, I am not the best writer ever, (hence the "Simple" in Gracefully Simple ; )) so forgive me if this blog starts off boring and plain : )

As stated before, I will be spending the next 10 weeks in beautiful Virginia Beach, VA and could not be more excited!! I am excited to see what the Lord has in store for me, and I know He will help me grow immensely throughout the summer. I will meet new people and make new friends, which is also a scary experience, but I am excited for the friendships that I am going to make that will last a lifetime and challenge me to be a better person : )

I leave late Sunday, so I would ask (if you are the prayin' kind) to please lift up prayer for a safe trip, and a summer of epic proportions : ) Pray that the Lord will work in me and through me as I spread His Word, and learn more about it myself : )

Thanks for journeying alongside of me : )