So. I've decided to make some changes.
Admittedly, I had to come to terms with my multiple cases of denial. However, I felt that as a traveler, I would leave De-Nile to Egypt so I could visit the real thing later instead of dwelling on what not real now.
"Denial about what?" you may ask?
Well, you know that little bit of information on all social media sites that says: Location? That was the downfall of my pride. I realized this and had to come to terms with myself and God about it all last night.
I realized I took pride last year in living somewhere "different". I went so far as to moving states,countries, and even hemispheres last year in my pursuit of God and travels.
And now, this year, I've reversed everything from that- moved back to the northern hemisphere. cool. Moved back to 'Murrica. God bless it. But then I moved back to Louisiana---errrrmmm, not what I had in mind.
I was born and raised in Louisiana! Where is the adventure in moving back here?
and intro the little pride demon now.
I didn't realize that this was really what wasn't just my "adventurous spirit" or "travel bug" within me.
It's just plain old pride that needs to pack it's bags, not me.
So,That all aside:
Like I said in my last post- I am so genuinely happy with my life right now. I feel so blessed.
I am currently in Lafayette, Louisiana attending University of Louisiana at Lafayette (meaning yes, I am indeed a Ragin' Cajun'). I am majoring in Vocal Music Education. Yes, I'm doing the classic college student thing and live in a dorm and all that jazz. (The dorm part of life is DEFINITELY not my favorite---I really miss my kitchen.)
I am stationed here for the next 4 years as I pursue my degree. In the mean time, I am so blessed that Andrew (my beyond wonderful boyfriend!He's from Iowa, so he's far from home all over again.) made the brave move straight from Australia to Louisiana to be with me! (He is definitely a keeper! He's just the best.)
So together, we have officially found a new home church down here! http://mlclafayette.com/ Metro Life Church! We've been attending here since the first weekend we've been in Lafayette and feel absolutely beyond blessed to be a part of a church with such an incredible vision to reach people for God!
(You should check them out wherever you are! They have sermons online, resources on their website, and even an app for you mac or android products!)(shameless plug.)
Well folks, that's all for now, that is my update on life. But here's to my New Discoveries, with each new day. God unveils and reveals more and more of His character as we seek fully after Him. He opens our eyes to New Discoveries all the time that we may see more of Him.
“You have your heads in your Bibles constantly because you think you’ll find eternal life there. But you miss the forest for the trees. These Scriptures are all about me! And here I am, standing right before you, and you aren’t willing to receive from me the life you say you want."-John 5:39-40(Message)
-Let's not be so focused on our futures that we miss all that God has for us now!
Love,
Kaitlyn Wheat
Friday, October 12, 2012
Friday, September 28, 2012
It is well.
I am so happy with my life.
He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. No matter if our circumstances were different from yesterdays and if tomorrow nothing will ever be the same as it has been today and before-- He will remain. He holds it all, because He remains.
When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say: It is well, It is well with my soul.
I know it sounds like such a simple thing to say, but none of us say that too often, now isn't that right?
I'm not exactly sure why, but I feel so overwhelmed at the fact that I am contented.
I had a nice,quiet conversation with My Lord last night:
"Wow God, I'm so surprised everything is coming together so well! I was so worried things might not come around so well, but has fallen into place!"I must say it felt a bit like being scolded, but also a bit like being hugged tighter. Because He loves us, oh how He loves us.
"Why would you worry that I wouldn't make things work out? When do I not take care of the things I have my hands on?"
He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. No matter if our circumstances were different from yesterdays and if tomorrow nothing will ever be the same as it has been today and before-- He will remain. He holds it all, because He remains.
When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say: It is well, It is well with my soul.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
You prepare a table before me
The daughter is following along. Holding her Daddy's last two fingers in her tiny, little hands, she is jogging along trying keep up.
"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!Where are we going? Where are you leading me?"
He tells her simply
"Follow along dear one, I've got your hand."
Confused and still wondering about their journey, His daughter holds tighter to His hand. He picks up speed. It is now more difficult for her little feet to jostle alongside Him. She picks up her pace but instead of feeling like she's running with Him, it is as if He is ushering her forward.
"Dad..Daddy.. why, why are going so fast?"
She said still running while trying to catch her breath. She is wearing down, trotting along with her Daddy.
"Here, Sweetheart, come inside with me"
He says as they approach an unfamiliar home. This house is surrounded by fields of grain along the roadside. The bumpy gravel path leads them to the door as he urges his daughter along, walking even faster and faster to go inside.
"Daddy...Dad..we've never been here before, what's going on here??we've never been here before..where are we goi..."
Before she could finish her sentence, He opens the door for them. The house looks dark and empty, but there is a warm ambiance about it despite the unfamiliarity. Maybe it's because Daddy's here that she feels safe anyway. But still confused.
No longer holding hands, no longer keeping pace, they stroll further inside into a grand room;a very open and bare room, but somehow still grand. For a second, the girl loses sight of her dad and begins to panic:
"Where did you go Dad? I can't see you! Why did you leave me in here? I don't even know what's.."
She catches His eye through the crack in the door. He swings the door wide and approaches the long table in the middle of the room. Her Dad, with purple cloth in hand, rubs her back and stoops to tell her
"Sweetheart,you're okay.See, here I am! Hey!watch me closely now, see what I'll do with this room for ya!"
As he gives her a quick smile and rub on the shoulder, He makes His way back to the table and extravagantly tosses the opposite end of the amethyst cloth to cover the table. His daughter watches wide-eyed, as if this is all unfolding in slow motion. He then goes to the cupboard, and pulls out the finest dinnerware she has ever seen. Fine gold china, with gold utensils and gold rimmed wine glasses- how exquisite! She watches intently as her Daddy continues to prepare the table for her with impeccable precision and design.
"Here,My Daughter! Come dine with me! This is for you My Love! I've prepared a place for you!Here we shall stay and remain together always My Darling!"
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Psalm 23.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Summer in Sydney
After a fantastic Christmas Break back home, full of getting to spend time with my family, friends, youth group, church, band, and hometown restaurants, I flew back to my other home here in Sydney. I landed pretty early in January (the 8th I think), I still had about a month of summer before school starts back and schedules/ routines return. While school is back in full swing already, and there are many more adventures to be had on days off, here’s a peak or recap into summer:
Weather: Rain… all the time. Just, all the time. BUT it’s fine, because when it rains, that means my roommate Tyler and I’s feet aren’t on fire when we wake up from the sun beaming through the windows! And there’s lazy movie days galore because of the poor weather. So not always is bad weather bad! There was a really nice, sunny week the week I first was back in Sydney, and then God blessed Summer Camp up in Newcastle with unbelievably great weather! But alas, it’s been rainy and I’ve been going barefoot (classic Australian style) and not even bothering with my hair lately because of it.
FUEL SUMMER CAMP!!!: favorite summer memory for sure! I am a year 8 Leader (8th grade), and had my RDG(stands for radical discipleship group…kinda like a miniature connect group of students) of 4 amazing girls at camp with me. I had never been camping-like in tents and stuff- in my life before, so this was DEFINITELY a new experience for me. I shared a tent with 3 other leaders, and it turns out-(thought I’d never say it)—tents aren’t so bad! I actually slept really well every night with just my sleeping bag and blanket. (I’m assuming I slept so hard because of how full the days were? ha, I dunno!) The only thing that really freaked me out a bit was that there were only 8 showers for 600 people(fuel groups from city, hills, Brisbane, southwest, and extension service churches)…. I showered on the first day… and then there was an abundance of wet wipes for the rest of the week. Yuuucckkk. So since everyone smelled so lovely, it was just ignorable by the end of the week. It was rank. It didn’t even matter how nasty you were, because when it came to tribal wars twice a day- you were always about to get MUCH more gross.
We had tribal wars where our 4 teams would compete in physical challenges, dance competitions, cheers, chants, presentations, you name it. Not braggin’ on my team but…. Brave did win :) and it was awesome!
Haha, anyways, so those were always right before we went into worship-which was also so moving and touching. The coolest thing to witness and be a part of was watching leaders encourage, prophecy, or pray over each other and over students…but the even more touching part was watching the students step out in faith and do the same for one another and even for us leaders. I’ll tell ya, one of the most amazing worship experiences I had during the week was this 12 year old Fuel girl praying over me and speaking the words from God that was exactly what I needed in that moment. God is so faithful, so amazing.
As far as recreation goes, Glenrock Scout Camp in Newcastle (obviously, where the camp was located) was the PERFECT set up. It had space for a ridiculous amount of water bomb wars (boys vs girls…of course), a giant hill that served as the perfect slope for a MASSSIIVVEEE slip n’ slide (I never found the guts to do it and shred my knees/back into oblivion, but it looked fun!) The best part was that the camp had both a lake AND a beach!!! What a great location! We actually had some girls that would just swim the lake to get back to the tents instead of walking to them! Crazy kids. Lake Franklin and the beach were set between stunning cliffs and the gorgeous blue sky overhead. While the beach was nice looking, it wasn’t so kind. The waves were more massive than anything I’ve ever personally seen or been in, was a bit too much for me to swim in! As soon as I got out of the water, they had to rescue 2 kids who had been caught in rip tides! That was scary! So of course, they then closed the beach for the afternoon. The second day went about the same way as far as the dangerousness of the water went. And the Third day the beach wasn’t even open because of the fact that there were 2 fatal shark attacks just 20 minutes away from where we were- water CLOSED for sure. BUT! The second afternoon of camp, there was a LEGIT food fight! It was so gross, and so much fun! Syrup, sugar, flour, honey, condiments, whipped cream EVERYWHERE! Then everyone washed off in the lake. Then the lake definitely smelled like ketchup. Yummmmm. *blech. One afternoon we had a mall excursion which was fun. Nice mall, cute little town. There were 2 dance parties and a movie night during the week after the night service! I always grabbed the glowsticks from the dance parties and brought them to my tent to use as a flashlight. Ha, worked pretty well! Anyways, I’m so glad I got to go because I feel like it definitely helped me not only grow closer to God but as well as to the students in Fuel and the rest of the leadership team!
Job searching: yuck. I’ve been doing heaps of job searching. Stillllll looking. Please keep praying with me that I’ll find one SOON!( and more specifically, close to where I live would be nice!)
Opera House: I have been blessed with the most amazing boyfriend who got us tickets to go see West Side Story at the Opera House! We got to dress up all fancy, then went out to eat, grabbed Starbucks, then went inside the spectacular Opera House! It’s as gorgeous and interesting looking on the inside as it is on the outside, if not more so! The show was phenomenal! The film version of West Side Story was shot on a massive screen, and the Sydney Symphony played all of the music for the film, every sound, every note—so incredibly precise. All the instruments so remarkably in sync with one another- it was captivating to watch their movements as a group and to hear which instruments exactly made what sound effect in the movie. The sound in the concert hall was like none other. It was an experience I’ll never forget. After the show, Andrew and I walked around the harbor a bit and got ice cream :) I am blessed.
Weather: Rain… all the time. Just, all the time. BUT it’s fine, because when it rains, that means my roommate Tyler and I’s feet aren’t on fire when we wake up from the sun beaming through the windows! And there’s lazy movie days galore because of the poor weather. So not always is bad weather bad! There was a really nice, sunny week the week I first was back in Sydney, and then God blessed Summer Camp up in Newcastle with unbelievably great weather! But alas, it’s been rainy and I’ve been going barefoot (classic Australian style) and not even bothering with my hair lately because of it.
FUEL SUMMER CAMP!!!: favorite summer memory for sure! I am a year 8 Leader (8th grade), and had my RDG(stands for radical discipleship group…kinda like a miniature connect group of students) of 4 amazing girls at camp with me. I had never been camping-like in tents and stuff- in my life before, so this was DEFINITELY a new experience for me. I shared a tent with 3 other leaders, and it turns out-(thought I’d never say it)—tents aren’t so bad! I actually slept really well every night with just my sleeping bag and blanket. (I’m assuming I slept so hard because of how full the days were? ha, I dunno!) The only thing that really freaked me out a bit was that there were only 8 showers for 600 people(fuel groups from city, hills, Brisbane, southwest, and extension service churches)…. I showered on the first day… and then there was an abundance of wet wipes for the rest of the week. Yuuucckkk. So since everyone smelled so lovely, it was just ignorable by the end of the week. It was rank. It didn’t even matter how nasty you were, because when it came to tribal wars twice a day- you were always about to get MUCH more gross.
We had tribal wars where our 4 teams would compete in physical challenges, dance competitions, cheers, chants, presentations, you name it. Not braggin’ on my team but…. Brave did win :) and it was awesome!
Haha, anyways, so those were always right before we went into worship-which was also so moving and touching. The coolest thing to witness and be a part of was watching leaders encourage, prophecy, or pray over each other and over students…but the even more touching part was watching the students step out in faith and do the same for one another and even for us leaders. I’ll tell ya, one of the most amazing worship experiences I had during the week was this 12 year old Fuel girl praying over me and speaking the words from God that was exactly what I needed in that moment. God is so faithful, so amazing.
As far as recreation goes, Glenrock Scout Camp in Newcastle (obviously, where the camp was located) was the PERFECT set up. It had space for a ridiculous amount of water bomb wars (boys vs girls…of course), a giant hill that served as the perfect slope for a MASSSIIVVEEE slip n’ slide (I never found the guts to do it and shred my knees/back into oblivion, but it looked fun!) The best part was that the camp had both a lake AND a beach!!! What a great location! We actually had some girls that would just swim the lake to get back to the tents instead of walking to them! Crazy kids. Lake Franklin and the beach were set between stunning cliffs and the gorgeous blue sky overhead. While the beach was nice looking, it wasn’t so kind. The waves were more massive than anything I’ve ever personally seen or been in, was a bit too much for me to swim in! As soon as I got out of the water, they had to rescue 2 kids who had been caught in rip tides! That was scary! So of course, they then closed the beach for the afternoon. The second day went about the same way as far as the dangerousness of the water went. And the Third day the beach wasn’t even open because of the fact that there were 2 fatal shark attacks just 20 minutes away from where we were- water CLOSED for sure. BUT! The second afternoon of camp, there was a LEGIT food fight! It was so gross, and so much fun! Syrup, sugar, flour, honey, condiments, whipped cream EVERYWHERE! Then everyone washed off in the lake. Then the lake definitely smelled like ketchup. Yummmmm. *blech. One afternoon we had a mall excursion which was fun. Nice mall, cute little town. There were 2 dance parties and a movie night during the week after the night service! I always grabbed the glowsticks from the dance parties and brought them to my tent to use as a flashlight. Ha, worked pretty well! Anyways, I’m so glad I got to go because I feel like it definitely helped me not only grow closer to God but as well as to the students in Fuel and the rest of the leadership team!
Job searching: yuck. I’ve been doing heaps of job searching. Stillllll looking. Please keep praying with me that I’ll find one SOON!( and more specifically, close to where I live would be nice!)
Opera House: I have been blessed with the most amazing boyfriend who got us tickets to go see West Side Story at the Opera House! We got to dress up all fancy, then went out to eat, grabbed Starbucks, then went inside the spectacular Opera House! It’s as gorgeous and interesting looking on the inside as it is on the outside, if not more so! The show was phenomenal! The film version of West Side Story was shot on a massive screen, and the Sydney Symphony played all of the music for the film, every sound, every note—so incredibly precise. All the instruments so remarkably in sync with one another- it was captivating to watch their movements as a group and to hear which instruments exactly made what sound effect in the movie. The sound in the concert hall was like none other. It was an experience I’ll never forget. After the show, Andrew and I walked around the harbor a bit and got ice cream :) I am blessed.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Joyeux Noel!
I love Christmas music- always have and always will. Some people say they don't , and I understand not loving songs about snow people, flying reindeer, or hippos (but i still think it's fun!). However, a good bit of Christmas music is definitely some amazing worship songs.
Christmas songs are worship, exultation to God because of who He is and what He's done. They tell not just the goodness but also the greatness, the divinity of our God.
My favorite Christmas song is O come, O come Emmanuel. This is a perfect example of a Christmas song of worship.
The meaning of the song reads better if you read it in sentence versus score and measure.
O come, O come, Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel that mourns in lonely exile here, until the Son of God appears.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to the, O Israel!
There are many more verses, but they essentially all share and tell of the same story. The song itself has a sound of both desperation and joy. It reflects upon the history of the Jews- they had been hard pressed, in exile, forced out of their own land, and forced to stop their own religious practices, traditions, and habits in a foreign land, in terrible circumstances. Emmanuel means "God with us". The Jews were looking for the man that will give them back their land, their culture, their religious freedom.
So very merry Christmas to you, and I hope we all remember to worship God in everything-in word,deed, or song this Christmas season. :)
Joyeux Noel!
Christmas songs are worship, exultation to God because of who He is and what He's done. They tell not just the goodness but also the greatness, the divinity of our God.
My favorite Christmas song is O come, O come Emmanuel. This is a perfect example of a Christmas song of worship.
The meaning of the song reads better if you read it in sentence versus score and measure.
O come, O come, Emmanuel and ransom captive Israel that mourns in lonely exile here, until the Son of God appears.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel shall come to the, O Israel!
There are many more verses, but they essentially all share and tell of the same story. The song itself has a sound of both desperation and joy. It reflects upon the history of the Jews- they had been hard pressed, in exile, forced out of their own land, and forced to stop their own religious practices, traditions, and habits in a foreign land, in terrible circumstances. Emmanuel means "God with us". The Jews were looking for the man that will give them back their land, their culture, their religious freedom.
They needed Emmanuel- God to be with them. They needed a saviour.They needed to know and be reassured of the fact that rescue is coming,
They were probably at this point thinking something like-
"Where is this saviour that God promised would take us out of captivity? where is the man that was promised to come and help and save us? It's been too long, I don't know how much longer I trust how much I believe this anymore.. But God you tell me to hold on, because He's coming.. O come, O come saviour, God be with us in these trials.."
So the song lyrics read that way-
" O come, come to us and God be with us and save us from this terrible state of captivity and trial. We have been in this captivity, in these trying times for far too long and need our saviour. We are waiting For the Son of God to come down and save us."
probably at this point, it is hard to hold on to hope. But oh, imagine the celebration to be had when the Saviour did come! Imagine what a relief it would be to sing
"Rejoice! Rejoice! GOD IS WITH US! He's come to us-Israel!"
This is the hope they'd been waiting for!God is Good, God is Great- God keeps His promises!
So you may not be held in captivity, but everyone has hard situations in life, so your song of worship could be similar to the Israelites'.
"O come and be with me God as I go through this treatment;split;move;death of a loved one;depression;sickness. There's-a lot riding on this;so much pain;mourning;strife;anxiety- but God, I am waiting for you."
and depending on the chorus you are singing at the time, be it "shall come to thee", or "has come to thee"..
"I Thank you, Lord in advanced, for I know you will have your will in this situation, and come through. You have never failed me, and I trust in you, that You are Lord over this situation."
"Thank you, Lord! I rejoice in the miracle, for you answer my prayers! You are great and I thank you for working in my situation!"
So very merry Christmas to you, and I hope we all remember to worship God in everything-in word,deed, or song this Christmas season. :)
Joyeux Noel!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Christmas Break blog
Christmas Break update:
So I’m home for Christmas break! I’ve been home about a week and a half now. It’s been great so far! It’s so strange being back in the states though. I would have never guessed there’d be a culture shock in coming back to where you’re from, but when you’re in an entirely different culture for a while and come back to something/ anything completely different- it does throw you off a bit!
So yes, I’m back in the states, where there is heaps of fast food and easy, cheap things! Where you can drive around on the right side of the road and drive thru restaurants; where denominations matter a whole lot and churches are on every corner. I sort of did miss seeing churches everywhere, come to think of it. I never realized how unchurched Australia was when moving there, but compared to the states, it is so obviously different in every sense. But, my Heart for the country is that others will realize it’s still a mission field even though it’s not a 2nd or 3rd world country. 1st world countries need Jesus just as much as the rest of the world.
The difference is how witnessing and ministry is gone about.
In the south, practically every person, if not everyone, has heard about Jesus and knows or recognizes a bible story or two. So ministry here, in my opinion, is tweaking people’s views on God, Jesus, the church, and Christians so that we share the True view and true points about our God and what we believe, hoping our actions line up with the preaching they've heard. It most likely looks like helping people-reaching out for the people that need to be drawn to God through community and sharing love.
In places where Jesus is more unheard of, it’s about basic simplicity of sharing the Gospel in understandable language; for the unchurched people in a society where talking about God, Jesus, or bible stories isn't as common don’t need big, religious words they haven’t heard of or know the meaning. They need Jesus and they need to know why they need Jesus.
Oh dear, don’t know what exactly what started that bit, but I guess through this Journey I’ve been finding my passions, more about the world, and being more aware about knowing the culture/people/society/issues of the environment you are currently in. No matter where you are, it is important to question: what is the most I can do here, how can I get involved, and how can I help?
For West Monroe, I’d say 3 things are quite important:
1. With the incredibly heart wrenching number of suicides in the parish just during 2011, it is vital to help be the change in this “trend”-more like epidemic. Since there’s no one thing to pin point suicides to, God is our only answer, and prayer should be our first response.
2. Bringing the body of Christ together as a whole and looking past denominational differences is a major goal that should be worked towards so that WE as God’s church, together as one, have no dissension among ourselves. We should love our friends and family despite any differences on how we “do church” or worship, for our love for God should be enough to continue to lift up each other despite any personal preferences or convictions. Who wants to be part of a religion that fights among itself? What kind of body is that?
3.I don’t know if I feel so strongly about this subject because I’m occasionally (when I lived here) involved in helping the homeless, but it’s SO OBVIOUS to anyone even going through the Ouachita parish area that there is a relatively large number of homeless people. Anyone driving for more than 5 minutes is sure to see someone either sitting on the corner of the street asking for a lift, money, a job, or food. There is just about always people walking around with large backpacks or things (or sometimes nothing at all) that is the entirety of their belongings, walking from place to place-to either get to work or just wandering. If you have any spare change to your name at all, you are considered to be in the top 8% of the wealthiest people in the world. You just bought a $9 meal at chick-fil-a, and then say you don’t have a dollar to give to the man and wife walking right beside your car starving? (now of course, I know good judgment should be used before giving someone a ride or something like that, especially if you’re female-that’s common sense, but there are so many things you can do to help out besides that- volunteer at a shelter, a soup kitchen, under the bridge ministries, etc.)
Anyways, basically, there’s always more that can be done.
You can talk less trash,gossip, negative comments to your church friends about “oh them Baptists… oh those pentacostals… the ___(insert any denomination here)”… other people that aren’t Christians hear it.They do.
And there are always prayers to be prayed for the friends and family that are permanently left with the aftermath of a suicide. Praying that there are no more certainly helps, but I personally pray more for peace of mind and heart of the friends and family of the person.
And there’s always a little bit extra you can do to give to or help the homeless and needy in the area.
Your mission field is not only whatever location God has put on your heart to do missions abroad, but as a Christian, your mission field is anywhere you are standing.
Friday, December 9, 2011
Aussie update from LAX
Aussie Update from America:
So I left Sydney Wednesday afternoon, my flight took off at about 3:25. Before I got on the plane, there were a few random little fiascos, but nothing too bad. First of all- I highly recommend anyone to weigh every bit of luggage before going to the airport. I wish I would have had a scale! I was definitely shocked when I found my one checked luggage was 7 kilos overweight! So, Andrew (He escorted me off to the airport) and I pulled over to the side because I was going to see what all I could take out of my luggage and he just take back to my flat when I leave. So, as we are sorting, a woman on the bench beside us mentions that we could get large bags to carry things in from a store in the airport. So Andrew treks off to find one, then she mentions that you can just get a big cardboard box from the Post and count that as a checked bag (I was allowed 2 bags, but only wanted to carry one to make things a bit easier.) So, we get the cardboard box, stuff about 8 kg of stuff in it, take it up to the counter and they take it! What a relief! That random woman from Idaho is a legend. Haha. This was the first time flying by myself! It wasn’t terrible, but when it’s with people it’s always more fun. Actually, saw my friends from College, Joel and Brian at the gates, and Joel and I were on the same flight so that worked out nicely.
The flight was a little less than 13 hours. I had a window seat towards the back of the plane. It wasn’t too shabby I’d say. . I was blessed to have nice seat neighbors. On the aisle seat was a sweet, older, Canadian woman, and the girl beside me was a student at UNSW! She was nice to talk to-and quite impressive I must say: Triple Major! I didn’t know it was humanly possible to do that, but she apparently does. Food-not too bad for airplane food, but as a college student, I’ve found I’ll eat next to anything given to me.
LAX airport is huge! Oh my goodness, I was quite turned around at first, but then I found my gate with relative ease. I’m currently sitting in the Starbucks outside of my gate while I have about another 40 minutes until my plane starts boarding. At this moment, I REALLY wish I had my American phone! Because Vodafone does not work at all here apparently. Noooo service=noooo contact to the world.
I am NOT looking forward to the plane flight to Dallas, the plane is going to be so small compared to all the international flying I’ve been doing! Yikes! I don’t enjoy flying. Take off is the worst part for sure. Thankfully, I had taken a Dramamine about 20 minutes before I got on the plane so I fell asleep RIGHT before take-off, and slept for about another two hours after that. I’m hoping for the same thing to happen on the way to Dallas! Lol.
You know that moment when you look around at all the people in your gate and are like “oh man, screaming child-or-the woman that’s drooling in her sleep right now- I hope they aren’t beside me on the flight!” I’ve pretty much been doing that all day. I’ve seriously prayed for favor regarding seatmates for days now! So far all is well! Shall update again after Dallas. I can’t wait to land in Texas, see mom and dad again finally! And also get some steak n’ shake or chickfila!
G’day (x2 since I get to do Wednesday twice!) mates!
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Always another side
"Brick wall,waterfall, girl you think you know it all;
you don't, I do, so ssphhh with your attitude"
-In a humorous way, I'm reminded of this silly little "patty-cake" song we used to sing when I was little because of something God told me. It's funny, His since of humor sometimes. He's so personal. I love it :)
So during chapel last Friday, God showed me a picture. Just a simple picture of a brick wall. That's it, nothing special or revolutionary.
But he said "Look and think on this- there is always another side. Every single wall in the entire world has another side to it. It is never over, it's never the end. In Every single situation in life, there is always another side."
-the other side of a tough situation- a resolution,peace, an alternative, something different.
-the other side of pain- healing, restoration
-the other side of death- eternity, (hopefully eternity in heaven)
-the other side of hopelessness-hope, discovery
-the other side of problematic society- revival, we can share the solution
-the other side of despair- faith, joy
There is a time and season for everything. I am reminded of Ecclesiastes 3-
you don't, I do, so ssphhh with your attitude"
-In a humorous way, I'm reminded of this silly little "patty-cake" song we used to sing when I was little because of something God told me. It's funny, His since of humor sometimes. He's so personal. I love it :)
So during chapel last Friday, God showed me a picture. Just a simple picture of a brick wall. That's it, nothing special or revolutionary.
But he said "Look and think on this- there is always another side. Every single wall in the entire world has another side to it. It is never over, it's never the end. In Every single situation in life, there is always another side."
-the other side of a tough situation- a resolution,peace, an alternative, something different.
-the other side of pain- healing, restoration
-the other side of death- eternity, (hopefully eternity in heaven)
-the other side of hopelessness-hope, discovery
-the other side of problematic society- revival, we can share the solution
-the other side of despair- faith, joy
There is a time and season for everything. I am reminded of Ecclesiastes 3-
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
See, even Solomon recognized there is another side to everything.
Whatever you may be going through, there is another side.
Never, never give up on anything.
That's what makes me so upset about suicide... so many think it ends problems, things won't be the way they are if they just end it... but there is ALWAYS hope, ALWAYS another side to any situation,problem, or issue you may be faced with in your life. Things can and will change in due time. and there is of course, always another side to the brick wall of death- there is eternity. which way are you going to spend it? please don't take matters lightly and brush it off. Suicide is a real "wall" people contemplate, and sit at far too long. We see this massive wall, what are we doing to share the way around it? In my opinion, so much cause of suicide is hopeless people feel-the lack of faith that there is a way out of their current situation.
There is always another side to the wall.
There is always another way.
Didn't mean to rant there: I just see a problem, and so deeply desire to be part of a solution to fix this "epidemic".
Maybe I'm taking Church History Tutorials too seriously when I begin to think and literally plan out ways to be part of a solution to problems that are facing not only the church as a unit,but the world's health as a whole. Maybe I am, or maybe He's taking me on the path of something that has the potential to be picked up,given life to, and taken action with.
"And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."-Romans 8:28.
So what if on the other side of my brick wall is a waterfall? I can't begin to know it all, even if I think I do sometimes. I don't, He does, so sphhh goes my attitude and mindset in replacement for His.
Tea time=Jesus Time
One of my favorite habits is having a ridiculous amount of tea every day. It's the equivalent of my sanity.
A couple cups every morning, afternoon, and before I sleep seems to be about the normal. I think my favorite part about this is not even revolving around the drink, but having the opportunity to just hold the cup,take in the warm as it heats my hands and soothes my throat, and stop for a moment... ah, what a blessed moment in life when you have the opportunity to just stop...just pause for a moment...selah.
It has been an insanely ridiculously crazy week. Life is such a roller coaster of highs and lows.
Really highs, and really lows.
First, I find that I'm going to be an aunt in May!!!!
I couldn't be happier! well sort of... I told Emily not to get pregnant while I'm gone and she gets pregnant as soon as I'm gone! punk. haha, but really, I'm SOO excited! Emily and Ty will be great parents and I can't wait to be Aunt Kate! I'm going to get tons of "Mum" things while they're at my accessibility here down under ;)
Then! I get an email from Lee University (one of the few colleges I applied to for Fall 2012), the one that I have mainly wanted to go to for a few years now, but didn't think I'd be able to because of expenses. The email said that they had revised my application and offered me a full ride!! this is such a blessing and answered prayer, because my prayer about this college was "God, if this is where you want me to go, you will provide the way to be able to go there". He so did, and is so good!
Low side-Not feeling so well here lately-idk what's up with that. but it's not fun. But, I will be healed and feeling better-In Jesus' Name. and also=Bed bugs.yes, full fledged bed bugs.they are gone now, but it has been a not fun beginning of the week, I tell you. They were just in mine and Rooney's room,thankfully not the entire flat! but still- that's ZERO fun. Threw out all of our mattresses, had to clean as much as humanly possible, wash&dry (in hot, hot heat,mind you) literally every item Rooney and I own that has a bit of fabric on it. (oh btw- I found some pillows EXPLODE in the washing machine...who knew.) sooo that's been heaps of fun. BUT- The laundry is finished, and God has been good to me. blessing #1:Two friends offered mattresses! So by Friday, Rooney and I both will have beds to sleep on again! blessing #2:Good friends that just cook me lunch or dinner when I am busy and don't have time or energy to do it myself! sooo nice on weeks like this! blessing #3-another friend gave me pillows!including a body pillow!(if you know me, you know these are one of my favorite things in the world!)! Things may be challenging sometimes, but it's in the times where you can't help anything on your own, that you see God come through on your behalf. And also when you get to see how much people care and how awesome your friends are :) so thank you, everyone!
perspective, perspective. I have a lovely flat in Sydney, Australia, with a fantastic view of the city, a place to lay my head, food in the cabinets, great friends, church, and family.
God is good, all the time.
So as I sit here on my mattress, drinking my cuppa (thats aussie for cup of tea, or cup of coffee),- black tea with one dash of milk, and a tad of sugar, I breathe it in, am reminded to keep perspective and know that God is good, all the time. Selah.
A couple cups every morning, afternoon, and before I sleep seems to be about the normal. I think my favorite part about this is not even revolving around the drink, but having the opportunity to just hold the cup,take in the warm as it heats my hands and soothes my throat, and stop for a moment... ah, what a blessed moment in life when you have the opportunity to just stop...just pause for a moment...selah.
It has been an insanely ridiculously crazy week. Life is such a roller coaster of highs and lows.
Really highs, and really lows.
First, I find that I'm going to be an aunt in May!!!!
I couldn't be happier! well sort of... I told Emily not to get pregnant while I'm gone and she gets pregnant as soon as I'm gone! punk. haha, but really, I'm SOO excited! Emily and Ty will be great parents and I can't wait to be Aunt Kate! I'm going to get tons of "Mum" things while they're at my accessibility here down under ;)
Then! I get an email from Lee University (one of the few colleges I applied to for Fall 2012), the one that I have mainly wanted to go to for a few years now, but didn't think I'd be able to because of expenses. The email said that they had revised my application and offered me a full ride!! this is such a blessing and answered prayer, because my prayer about this college was "God, if this is where you want me to go, you will provide the way to be able to go there". He so did, and is so good!
Low side-Not feeling so well here lately-idk what's up with that. but it's not fun. But, I will be healed and feeling better-In Jesus' Name. and also=Bed bugs.yes, full fledged bed bugs.they are gone now, but it has been a not fun beginning of the week, I tell you. They were just in mine and Rooney's room,thankfully not the entire flat! but still- that's ZERO fun. Threw out all of our mattresses, had to clean as much as humanly possible, wash&dry (in hot, hot heat,mind you) literally every item Rooney and I own that has a bit of fabric on it. (oh btw- I found some pillows EXPLODE in the washing machine...who knew.) sooo that's been heaps of fun. BUT- The laundry is finished, and God has been good to me. blessing #1:Two friends offered mattresses! So by Friday, Rooney and I both will have beds to sleep on again! blessing #2:Good friends that just cook me lunch or dinner when I am busy and don't have time or energy to do it myself! sooo nice on weeks like this! blessing #3-another friend gave me pillows!including a body pillow!(if you know me, you know these are one of my favorite things in the world!)! Things may be challenging sometimes, but it's in the times where you can't help anything on your own, that you see God come through on your behalf. And also when you get to see how much people care and how awesome your friends are :) so thank you, everyone!
perspective, perspective. I have a lovely flat in Sydney, Australia, with a fantastic view of the city, a place to lay my head, food in the cabinets, great friends, church, and family.
God is good, all the time.
So as I sit here on my mattress, drinking my cuppa (thats aussie for cup of tea, or cup of coffee),- black tea with one dash of milk, and a tad of sugar, I breathe it in, am reminded to keep perspective and know that God is good, all the time. Selah.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
It's been a while...
Sorry folks... I know it's been a while since my last post..a month exactly... ha, I really have no excuses for that except for the fact that I haven't really been sure what to post about! I mean, I could post about everyday life, since being in Sydney now feels normal. so i guess that is new! I've gotten a lot more used to looking right while crossing roads and such, sticking to the left of things/places, and slowly getting better at understanding reading Celsius. As far as things go living on my own:yes Mom, I've been price checking groceries, doing (too much)laundry, cooking,cleaning,etc. :) As far as health goes: I'm feeling so much better! I was sick with the flu for about a week and a half(Yes, I broke down and went to the doctor here about a week into feeling terrible. What I have to say about Australian doctor=well, he and everyone in the office WEREN'T Australian and English was clearly not their first language. I do say it was by far the quickest doctor's visit I've ever experienced. But... I'm still not entirely convinced of the lack of thoroughness of the examination.) So I am all better now and enjoying this week! It's been a beautiful spring so far until the past 2 days where it's been cold and rainy, but a little bit of that is okay ;)
let's see... neat things I've done since last post:
-went outside of Sydney to this adorable,little beach town: Kiama! It's officially one of my favorite places ever. The beaches and coast line and landscape is absolutely stunning!! Since there's often large rocks or cliffs on the beaches here, I've gotten to very much enjoy climbing them and sitting on the furthest or highest edge and getting the best view in the world. To me, it tells of the magnitude of God's great craftsmanship.
-finally been to Coogee beach now as well; twas nice-twas cold.
-Vogue Fashion Night Out! so that was pretty fantastic- go downtown and find that all around downtown Sydney, stores were open late and had extra awesome sales on and were giving away free stuff left and right, with models everywhere instead of mannequins. It was such cool atmosphere and gave an excellent presentation to Sydney fashion!
-Big Exo Day! So, while I didn't really get to see much of it because I was at the entrances during the event- It was such a cool evangelistic youth event- I've never seen anything like it! SOOO many rides, food booths, bands, singers, rappers, etc. and Reggie Dabbs brought the Word! and most of all- 1200 kids got saved! beautiful day outside, and such an incredible youth event!
-I'm finally recognizing things! like bus numbers(you generally just take the m20, 301,302,and 303)( see, look, i know now :) ) and some street names... which is a big feat for me, since i barely know street names in West Monroe!
hmm.....so...let me know what you'd like me to post about or fill ya in on...because I'm pretty much out of ideas off the top of my head. still THOROUGHLY enjoying it here! Love life in Sydney; Love everything God is doing in my life. Can't wait to see what is to come !
let's see... neat things I've done since last post:
-went outside of Sydney to this adorable,little beach town: Kiama! It's officially one of my favorite places ever. The beaches and coast line and landscape is absolutely stunning!! Since there's often large rocks or cliffs on the beaches here, I've gotten to very much enjoy climbing them and sitting on the furthest or highest edge and getting the best view in the world. To me, it tells of the magnitude of God's great craftsmanship.
-finally been to Coogee beach now as well; twas nice-twas cold.
-Vogue Fashion Night Out! so that was pretty fantastic- go downtown and find that all around downtown Sydney, stores were open late and had extra awesome sales on and were giving away free stuff left and right, with models everywhere instead of mannequins. It was such cool atmosphere and gave an excellent presentation to Sydney fashion!
-Big Exo Day! So, while I didn't really get to see much of it because I was at the entrances during the event- It was such a cool evangelistic youth event- I've never seen anything like it! SOOO many rides, food booths, bands, singers, rappers, etc. and Reggie Dabbs brought the Word! and most of all- 1200 kids got saved! beautiful day outside, and such an incredible youth event!
-I'm finally recognizing things! like bus numbers(you generally just take the m20, 301,302,and 303)( see, look, i know now :) ) and some street names... which is a big feat for me, since i barely know street names in West Monroe!
hmm.....so...let me know what you'd like me to post about or fill ya in on...because I'm pretty much out of ideas off the top of my head. still THOROUGHLY enjoying it here! Love life in Sydney; Love everything God is doing in my life. Can't wait to see what is to come !
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