follow the leader

Last night I joined several of my dormmates in various hilarious & fun activities including a corn maze, a "trick-or-treat" scavanger hunt, & pumpkin decorating. For each of the activities I had to follow the leader in order to understand & enjoy the activity to its fullest.

The first activity was a corn maze. This is only my second time in a corn maze, & I have to say, this one was soo much fun! The maze was split into 8 pieces. Before starting, each group was given a full map of the maze stapled shut (only to be used in an emergency), a grid for 8 pieces, & the first piece of the map. A star was located on each piece, leading to a mailbox with the next map piece: the 8th piece leading to the exit. Jessica, Brittney, Amanda, Mandy, & I started off together. Running through a corn maze, one should always choose to follow a leader: but it took us getting lost a few times before we chose leaders. Before we knew it we were somewhat lost (we had a general idea of where we were). Mandy & Jess just started running, paying no attention to the map--would you believe that we almost ran into the first marker?! After that we tried to follow the map more closely, but found ourselves confused again. I looked at the girls & said, "Eenie, meenie, minie, moe, someone choose a way to go." Mandy Jo took license to lead us & after just two turns we found ourselves at the second marker! Jessica & I decided we did NOT want to lost again, so we began counting turns & quickly arrived at the other 4 markers & finally to the exit. We were the first group to finish by correctly following the markers (another group finished 10 minutes before we did having only reached 4 markers). Mandy Jo joked that Jessica & I should be Lewis & Clark, for leading the other three through the maze. I flipped the joke on her, saying that Britt, Amanda, & she were Lewis, And, Clark, & Jess & I were Saca & Jeweah, because Sacajeweah was the true leader of the Lewis & Clark expedition. It was so much fun to play "follow the leader" thru the corn maze!

Back on campus, we started the second portion of the evening with a devotional from Miss Heather Erickson. She spoke on the beauty of a woman who follows the Leader: Christ. A beautiful woman does not look on evil, is quick to hear & slow to speak, does what she knows to be right, sings songs, hymns, & spiritual songs, walks looking to spread the Gospel, & radiates God's holy fragrance. The devotion was perfect, encouraging each of us to follow our Leader everyday of our lives.

After the devotional, we were split into four groups: Creepy Crawlers, Wacky Werewolves, Vicious Vampires, & the Ghosts. The first game was a "trick-or-treat" scavanger hunt. 10 pumkins with candy were hidden around campus: some buckets had 10-12 pieces of candy, others only had 4 pieces. The goal was to find as many different buckets as possible. Each group was encouraged to split into smaller groups & then sent out to find the candy. Jess & I took off for the darkest places on campus--the most probable hiding places for candy! What we didn't know was that several of the guys in our brother dorm were dressed in all black & were to scare us. I was startled the first time, but then, I just laughed...until I found Jason, then I screamed! The crazieness of running around the campus looking for candy was hilarious!

At 11:30 all the groups returned to the dorm & enjoyed an hour of food, fellowship, & games. We were again asked to work together as a team & follow a leader. The night, though late, was filled with fun. I can't wait to do it again!

these are my people

Spirit week has once again come & gone. I love all the excitement & craziness that accompanies the week: looking completely ridiculous is fun! Maranatha has made some changes concerning societies: they are now led by brother & sister dorms. To encourage unity within the dorm societies, the brother & sister dorms worked together to win spirit week (in the past, spirit week is fought between the classes). I loved walking around the dorm & classes, realizing that no matter how crazily they were dressed, these are my people.


Monday: Redneck Day
It was soo much fun to dress up for this day! The campus was covered in camo & hunter orange, beer-bellied boys, flannel, & blacked out teeth. The student body went out of their way to look as terrible as possible. A point was made that a "redneck" differs depending on the region of the country. We had them all: Southern NASCAR fans, East & West Coast trailer trash, & the mid-western farmer.


Tuesday: Clash Casual/Fashion Fauxpas
What a scary group we all made! Our mothers would have cried (mine laughed) to see us dressed so atrociously! As much as I love to be put together, I remember a time when fashion did not matter to me at all (I can see Momlady smiling as she reads this): as long as there was a stripe of the color in a part of my wardrobe, it matched. I remember dressing in all green when I was five telling Momlady that I matched because I was being monochromatic. I am proud to say that on Tuesday, I was able to wear a little of every color in my wardrobe, except orange. Tuesday was also Kat's 22nd birthday. Several of us went out to eat together in our spirit week garb. We received many odd glances from the other patrons at the Chinese buffet. A red-hat club was also meeting at the restraurant that afternoon & it was a blessing to talk to them. Though we were dressed rather oddly, those who found out we were from Maranatha only had good comments to say & encouraged us all to enjoy the remainder of spirit week.

Wednesday: Dynamic Duo/This & That/Famous Groups
Some very famous & some very uncheckable groups visited campus on Wednesday. There were several Superman & Lois duos, the Beatles, Sonny & Cher, the Bible staff dress as Bible referees, more than a few Thing 1 & Thing 2s showed up to stir up trouble. Jarid & I were part of two seperate Mystery Gangs. I loved being Velma & making ears for my roommate who graciously volunteered to be Scooby-Doo.

Thursday: 1968 Maranatha/Blue & Gold Day
Thursday was...interesting. Some did a great job dressing like they were students of 1968 Maranatha: Jarid & Korrine & Rachel (they dressed up like the original president & his wife, Mr. & Mrs. Cederholm). Others were floating between decades & majority of the student body donned blue & gold.

Friday: Dorm Society
Crazy chapel is held the Friday of spirit week. The dorm societies were sectioned off around the gym. Melford & Carey (Jarid is in Carey) wore black & silver, Hilsen & Leland wore green & white (rather confusing), Day & Armitage wore red & black, Gould & Spurgeon wore blue & white, & Weeks & Judson wore green & black. The student body officers put together games that provided hilarious competition between the dorms: a juggling contest, spelling with ping-pongs, a replica of Old Main out of chewed gum, & other games. My dorm society placed last, but nothing could have ruined such an awesome week.

As interesting as everyone looked this past week, I still proudly say, "These are my people."

i wanna be like you

On Saturday I had the opportunity to spend a little extra time with the 1st-6th graders of Windsor--we visited the Madison Zoo! It was so much fun to take a little time to relax & get away from my normal routine while getting to know the future of Windsor Baptist Church.

Abby & I drove to Madison from the school. After a slight delay (we got a little lost in Madison) we met the church group by the seals.I loved watching the monkeys swing from tree to tree, then press their faces to the glass because they knew they were being watched. I loved watching the polar bears, one swam laps almost the entire time we were there; they are such beautiful creatures. I loved the African animals: the rhinos, giraffes, & lions; the American prairie: bison, prairie dogs, &, of course, a badger (we were in Madison, WI, home of the UW Badgers). Abby & I felt like the kids from the church that we came to meet. Those kids, & their parents, were so excited to be at the zoo! Some of the kids, along with Abby, had never been to the zoo before. Their excitement was easily spread to their parents & workers. Shane & I & some of the kids bought animal masks to wear. I am so glad to be a human, but I felt like saying "I wanna be like you!" to some of the animals.

At church on Sunday & in AWANA on Wednesday, the kids were still excited to share about their time at the zoo. The AWANA lesson for Cubbies last night was Creation. It was hard to quiet them down after asking what their favorite animal was: they loved them all! One of the girls kept saying, "Me want to be a monkey. Me want to be a bird!" The feeling was mutual. In Disney's The Jungle Book, Louie wishes to be like man, but sometimes I think that we humans "wanna be like you."

under construction

"CAUTION: Life Under Construction"

Things are constantly under construction. Houses are being built, new stores set up in the mall, road construction that never seems to end (which can be rather frustrating during rush hour), the list goes on & on. It seems that wherever I turn, work is being done & things are being improved.

Change, though sometimes difficult to handle, is usually good. New houses replace burnt out shells or other unfit homes, new stores bring new styles & offer the public more variety, & new roads, as frustrating as the traffic may be, allow traffic to more smoothly from one place to another (until the road is under construction again, of course).

The difficulty with change, is that change is a continuous cycle. Things can never be fixed to perfection in this world. We will always have a need for new homes, stores, & roads (sorry, but somewhere out there, there will always be a construction related traffic jam). Though this cycle is generally viewed as a negative, it should be seen as a possitive: job opportunities, fun new fashions, & something to save up for.

I have mentioned several times that the Lord has changed me in several ways this summer: it's true! I learned so much about myself & my awesome God through the circumstances & people that He placed me in this summer. This summer, I realized that a life too, can be under construction & that this construction is a continuous cycle. I am continuing to learn areas where I fail, where I can improve, & how to fully rely on the God who was gracious enough to save me. Psalm 119:73 says, "Thy hands have made me & fashioned me: give me understanding, that I may learn Thy commandments." The less I focus on me, the more I realize that I have much more to change in order to become more like Christ. When you see me, be warned, I am a life under construction.

wasted

I love the opening week of each semester at college. I love catching up with friends from around the country. I love diving back into a semi-challenging academic schedule. I love once again having the opportunity to minister at Windsor, but most of all, I love the revival services that challenge me to have a soft, open heart for Christ.

This semester's speaker was evangelist Joe Mark. Dr. Mark is truly blessed with the gift of preaching. I could not wait to listen & soak up everything he had to say: God is using him in a powerful way. Each of his messages challenged me, but one sticks with me more than the others.

On Monday evening, Dr. Mark spoke from Isaiah 44:13-17 Giving God the Garbage. He pointed out that all too often Christians only give God their leftovers--their garbage. Instead of giving the Lord what He deserves, our personal best, we selfishly keep the best of our time, money, & strength to ourselves. After a long day of serving ourselves, we realize that we have forgotten God & rush to scrape together the remainder of our time, money, & strength for Him.

By this point, you are probably wondering why this blog is entitled "wasted". Dr. Mark emphasized throughout his message that a Christian who gives God only garbage is living a wasted life. I can still hear his illustration of a saved man who lived his life for himself. On his death bed he could only scream, "WASTED!" I do not want to live a wasted life! How selfish & disheartening to give the Saviour of my soul the left-overs.

Dr. Mark did not end his sermon with the dispair of a wasted life. To avoid a wasted life a Christian must simply dedicate his time & testamony to the Christ who saved him. Dedication is not an easy task: it takes determination & communication. Determination to give God the best of what He has given & constant communication with Christ through devotions & prayer.

The opening week to my sophomore year was filled with things that I love. I love all of the teachers & classes that I am enrolled in this semester. I loved eating, hanging out, & bowling with friends. But most of all, I loved being challenged spiritually. My life will not be wasted.

the wardrobe

In C. S. Lewis' epic tales, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, & the Wardrobe, Lucy Pevensie falls into a magical world just by opening a door to an old, dusty wardrobe. Yesterday, after talking with friends, I began to think about all the doors that the Lord has opened for me.

Friendships are a special gift. I cannot imagine my life without the friends that surround me, both at college & at home. Each friendship began with God opening a door where the slightest sliver of light shone through. Like Lucy I had to choose, despite the unseen costs & rewards, to engage myself in friendly conversation & open my heart to my friends. That step can be so hard! I am so thankful for the doors of friendship that the Lord directed me toward. Because of my friends I truly believe that I have been changed for good.

There are other doors: doors that lead to opportunities in ministry, academics, & career. These doors bring with them more apprehension than the doors of friendship . . . at least for me. I love meeting new people & having fun. I have been embarrassed enough in my life that I no longer care what people think about me as long as I am being myself & a good representation of Christ. That I snort & honk when I laugh does not bother me as it used to, but when Christ cracks open a door that leads to an opportunity in ministry, academics, or career, I get a little scared. I don't want to mess up something so important in my life. I am scared of the outcome, not so much in ministry, but in academics & career opportunities. It is these major areas, where I must completely trust Christ for the outcome, that I struggle the most to let go.

It is often hard to step out on faith & follow Christ; it is harder when the outcome of this step of faith cannot be seen. So many of the choices I have been challenged to make force me to trust Christ in the outcome. I love & get quite excited about change, yet it still scares me. What if I do the wrong thing? What if I make a mistake that is irreversable? This summer the Lord has taught me that I when I rely on Him there is "no cause for worry or for fear".

The Lord has so many doors cracked open: doors that lead to some great opportunities. I am excited & scared to open them & step inside leaning on Christ. Pray with me, that I would choose the best door & enter a wonderful world where I continue to grow to be more like Christ.

please remember me

I am back in the state of cheeseheads & looking forward to what the Lord has planned for my future, but I can't help but beg my friends & family back in Kansas City to please remember me. I know this semester will be full of great memories, but I wouldn't be where I am without remembering you who touched my life this past summer.

My summer job this was a special treat. I was spoiled to have such an amazing manager, Erin, & wonderful, fun, & weird co-workers who quickly became friends. I already miss my "Village people": I am so glad you all came into my life. I cannot help but smile when college friends ask me what I did this summer. There are too many fun memories to share . . . "Oh my soul!" Melissa, I miss you lots & wish you the best in your life. Chris, oh my soul, there are a buttload of things I could say, but I know they all would irritate the tar out of you! :) Allen, Jody, & all the rest, I keep fond memories of you in my heart. I do hope to return to the Village next season, but I am open to the Lord's leading at this point. I miss you all!

Loving family, thanks so much for making this summer special. I didn't get to spend very much time with you all, but the time we spent together was special. My memories of you all range from baseball games & a float trip to cook-outs & family games--I sincerely miss you all. God has done wonderful things in my life this summer & I am excited to see how He will continue to stretch me this fall.

Please remember me as I tackle another semester of college. I don't believe my course load will be hard, but I must remain focused & use my time appropriately. Along with classes, I am working in the yearbook office & in the campus dining commons. Pray that the Lord will give me strength & that I will be a wise steward of the time God has given me.

Please, remember me, friends & family. I will pray for each of you when you come to my mind. I can't wait to hear from you all. Keep me informed! I ask you to please remember me as I will remember great times with all of you!