Tagged!

Amber has tagged me to share 7 random pieces of information about myself. Here they are:

1. I am a seriously clumsy person. Some of my friends have lovingly nicknamed me "The Clutz". You would be shocked at some of the crazy ways I have injured myself throughout the years. Probably the best story involves me breaking my collar bone in Germany because of an extremely avoidable bicycle accident.

2. I love, love, love music and especially love listening to it loudly with my headphones on. I love picking out all of the different instruments and sounds. I find it very interesting that despite this passion for music, I can't sing (this of course doesn't stop me from singing, which can be unfortunate for those around me...something my teenagers are quick to point out) and I don't play an instrument (unless you count me playing the violin from 5th-7th grade or the fact that I can drum the beat for the song, "Wipeout")

3. I am a horrible procrastinator and sometimes joke that "procrastinate" should be my middle name. I really do want to improve in this area...I think I'll start working on it tomorrow.

4. I absolutely and totally despise bananas. Don't ask me why, but thinking of them grosses me out. I also don't like carbonated drinks or really sugary candy.

5. I am a huge animal-lover and used to want to be a veterinarian. I changed my mind as soon as I learned I would have to euthanize animals. I then wondered if I could be a pet shop owner instead.

6. I am not a tv watcher. In fact I don't even own a tv and when I did own one in America, it was only for watching movies, of which there are only a few that I enjoy watching, mostly the sweet, inspiring ones. I would much rather be reading a book, spending time with people, or have music playing.

7. I once climbed a mountain in Alaska, which is an almost miraculous feat for me for several reasons (see number 1 for one of those) and was only accomplished because I was with my amazingly motivating and patient brother, who also tricked me into thinking we weren't actually going to climb the whole thing. When I realized we were, it was too late to turn around. Nevertheless, I'm now thankful that I can say that I did it...and lived through it.

I tag Abby, Aimee,Becca, Charlotte, Emily, Leah, Maureen, and Sarah. Enjoy!

Cheering across the miles

What does one do when she can't watch football on tv and is missing one of the biggest games of the year? Well, she whips out her laptop, logs on to espn.com, and settles in for a long three hours of waiting for game status updates on the "scoreboard" page. What's fun, though, is when slowly, one teenage boy after another begins to get curious and by the end of the game, there are several staring at the computer screen with you, having learned all kinds of new football terminology and rules, sitting on the edge of their seats and yelling, "Refresh the screen! Did they score??" Yes I am now surrounded with a brand new bunch of Texas Longhorn fans from across the world. (Nevermind that they haven't actually seen them play yet.)

Here are some of the new fans:

The Future

This picture was taken at church last week of all the youth and children, a small snapshot of Botswana's future.



"Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of Heaven." Matthew 19:14

Youthful wisdom

Last night I was having a discussion with one of my girls at the dorm. God is doing huge things in her life right now and He is just radiating through her. I quoted something she said in the last post about our discipleship group and through our discussion last night, I found more that I'd like to share from her. Here is some great wisdom from a sixteen year old:

"I love how everything I am learning about God right now seems to all go together. Right now everything seems to be about worship. I used to think that worship was just about singing worship songs, but I am learning that worship is actually more, it is a lifestyle. Even on Saturday in our group when we were reading Philippians 2, when Paul said in verse 17: "Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all," that is a form of worship. Paul was willing to sacrifice his own life so others can know God, which is a way he is worshiping Him."

Yes, these are the wise, insightful words of a sixteen year old girl. I praise God for what He is doing in this young lady and wait with expectancy to see what amazing things He is going to do through her life!

Something I miss...

A few years ago my brother began the huge task of teaching me about football. Through great patience and perseverance, he eventually was successful. Since that time this has been something that has bonded us together and we both look forward to football season each year when we can discuss the different college teams, predict who will do well and who won't, and watch/analyze the games together. It began as just being something I could share with my brother, but I soon found myself actually watching games all by myself and growing to really love the game!

This football season is a sad one for Jason and I, as we are both overseas and don't have access to the game we love. I am now having to rely on you guys back home to keep me in the loop! So, if you are also a college football fan, feel free to email me any time with updates and predictions. I will then pass on the information to my brother so that we can keep up with our traditional football chats. :)

P.S. There is an ongoing argument with the teenage boys here in Botswana about which is the better football, American football or the world's football (soccer). We both passionately argue our points, but one way they always stump me is when they throw the question at me, "Why do you even call that football?!? You hardly use your foot with the ball at all!" At this point, I have to shrug my shoulders and agree. Why do we call it football??

"Philippians 2 Christians"

I have a new love and excitement for Saturday mornings these days, for a few reasons:

• I get to sleep in a little bit :)
  
• I am able to have a nice, long time with the Lord without rushing to get to work
• I can take a long walk or go for a quick jog while it is not too hot outside yet
• Discipleship group!! This is by far my favorite part of Saturday.

Today in our Discipleship Group time, we continued our study of Philippians, concentrating on chapter 2. We started off our time by watching the "Give me Your Eyes" video and the girls had to make a connection between the video and what was in chapter 2, which they had no trouble doing.

Our discussion time was once again wonderful and one of the awesome things I heard this morning from one of the girls was: "Before reading Philippians chapter 2, I always thought being a Christian was just about me and God. But now I see that it is also about other people. And we go to church not just for me and God, but to also be with other people. We're supposed to see how we can also help people around us." An amazing "aha moment" for a sixteen year old!

So our group challenge this week is to be available to serve others and look for how we can help those who are hurting. One of the ways we can help and serve others is through prayer, so we are also working as a group to grow as intercessors. They each made prayer notecards with different people and prayer requests on each card, which they'll carry around and pray over whenever they have time during the day. This tool has been a huge blessing to me, so I'm excited to pass it on to them.

I'm so proud of these young ladies and I love how I am also so challenged and encouraged by my time with them. May we all grow as "Philippians 2 Christians."

"Give Me Your Eyes"

I recently downloaded the new album from Brandon Heath and this song has seriously stirred my heart and become my new prayer. I hope it inspires you as well. (As a sidenote, I think the whole album, What if We, is great and is definitely worth listening to.)