the Lord is faithful!

Hooray! I GOT MY VISA! its just so beautiful :) I'm pleased to say that the Australian government has officially deemed me acceptable enough to live in their country for up to 2 years! It all happened so quickly... well, sort of. Let me explain.

I've been meaning to call the embassy in Washington DC for a few days now, just to check on how things are going with my forms, and hoping to get an estimate on when it might be done. So.. I finally got around to giving them a call this morning! The nice lady on the phone said that my Visa had been approved, and was in fact on its way back to me right then! So I went about my day super excited and thankful to God that I didn't have to worry anymore (and actually, that I never need to worry in the first place!) Hours later... I arrived back home after finishing up some errands and what do you know? THERE IT WAS! A little fed-ex envelope with my name on it! I was actually in the middle of telling my best friend all about the anxieties I had been feeling toward the whole Visa situation when I opened it. Its safe to say that I screamed in her ear.

So there you have it! All thats left is to book a little 15-hour flight and I'll be off!

Thanks, as always, for your prayers and support!

God bless you!

full support!!

"BEWARE OF KANGAROOS". Boy oh boy, I cannot wait to get a photo standing next to one of these signs :) It seems as though that will be happening SOON, because the Lord has provided 100% of my financial support!
PRAISE GOD for His faithfulness and provision... ALWAYS! It has been incredible to experience His strength and sovereignty over the last 8 months as I've been raising support for STINT. I've been so amazed by how the Lord has brought together all these people over the last few months to partner with me in ministry to reach college students in Australia. Right now I've got 125 individuals and families on my ministry team, and several of them I had never ever met (and some that I still haven't met!)

I've been so encouraged by the body of Christ who has totally joined with me and one another to reach the lost. I've absolutely loved raising support, which hadn't expected! I've been able to feel really connected with my family's home church that I once felt disconnected with during college and high school, I've been able to talk with my family about what I'm doing and why, I've seen college students, friends and complete strangers trust God along with me as they committed to give of their finances, and I've truly heard the Lord's voice and felt confident in the direction that He's leading me during the whole process. Its awesome to think that this STINT journey is really only just beginning, and I've been looking forward to it for over a year and a half!

Thanks to all of you who have prayed for me the past few months. The Lord has provided and answered those prayers! I look forward to sending an update FROM Australia, but alas, we're still waiting on our Visas. Please continue to pray for that!

God bless you and have a Merry Christmas!

winter snow

I've had this song on repeat since I bought it 25 minutes ago.

"Winter Snow" by Chris Tomlin, featuring Audrey Assad.

Seriously, give it a listen if you can. its beautiful:

Could’ve come like a mighty storm
With all the strength of a hurricane
You could’ve come like a forrest fire
With the power of heaven in your flame

But you came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Could’ve swept in like a tidal wave
Or an ocean to ravish our hearts
You could have come through like a roaring flood
To wipe away the things we’ve scarred

But you came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

No, your voice wasn’t in a bush burning
No, your voice wasn’t in a rushing wind
It was still, it was small, it was hidden

But you came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Visa. Its everywhere you want to be.

Well isn't that the truth! (Not the Visa credit card, of course... the Visa that will allow me to spend the next year as an Australian resident!)

Not only have I grown in my faith tremendously by trusting the Lord to provide for the financial support I need for a year in Australia... I now get to trust Him yet again to provide me and my team with our Temporary Resident Visas on time! We were supposed to mail in our forms by October 1st... but with all of the unexpected medical exams and official immigration documents, we only mailed them last week. Even though we've been told that it will likely take 8-10 weeks to process our Passports and get 2-year Visas, I have seen God do (what I previously thought to be)nearly impossible things in the last few months. It has been so incredible to watch the Lord bring me to new people who caught vision of what He was doing around the world! How could I dare doubt Him now?

Tomorrow is December 1st. Our tentative leave goal was/is January 7th. While I'm hesitant to begin an "official countdown"... Its 38 days!

Would you pray along with me, that our Visas would be processed quickly and that we would get our passports back in our hands within a few weeks? Also, please pray that I would be at 100% of my financial goal by Christmas. I'm at 96% right now, and am fully confident that the Lord will continue to provide!

November already?

Ahoy, Mateys! (Not clever, I realize)

I just wanted to include a snapshot of me in my halloween costume...

Anyway, I can't even believe that november is here already! It is crazy for me to think that I have been looking forward to STINT for about a year and a half now, and its almost 2 months until we leave! I am now at 91% of my support which means I can officially go! I intend to (and am praying to) be at 100% by December 1st, though.

I was able to pick up a copy of "Christianity Explained" which is a 6-week Bible study that we'll be able to go through with our new Aussie friends to explain more about Jesus and what being a Christian really means. Today I read through the first few pages which are meant to prepare the leader for ministry in Australia, and its getting me really excited for next year! Its going to look so different from the ministry I've done in Eau Claire! Its going to move much more slowly and relationally, as Aussies are so apathetic toward Christianity that they will easily blow it off unless they have other reasons to meet with you. I am excited to meet so many students and develop friendships that the Lord will use throughout the year to spread the knowledge of His truth.

This summer I have been soaking up as much knowledge as I can. Since I became a Christian as a freshman in college, I know very little about specific people and events that take place throughout the Bible. Since July I've even been meeting with a retired woman named Kathy, who really loves to teach. She's been pouring out her knowledge on the new testament and its been great to learn from her so that I can prepare for next year.

I'm finally beginning to let myself get EXCITED about all of this! Not that I ever doubted I would be going to Australia, but now that I am at 90% I can know for sure. The countdown will begin soon!

PRAYER REQUESTS:

Please pray for my teammate Nate who is at about 65% of his support. We need to be at 90% by December 1st so he has about one month left. Pray also for the current team in Brisbane who is preparing to take students on summer project to Byron Bay. Pray that those they meet on the beach will be open to hearing about Jesus and why He matters in their lives.

B+

As of sunday I am at 87% of my total support goal! (AKA a B+, if you were to give me a grade)... Anyway, before sunday, I had not jumped up any percentage points in at least 3 weeks.. then BAM! up 6% in a day-- which is huge! Whats even more awesome is that I got an email from a friend who told me that UW Eau Claire's fall retreat had prayed for me and my support that very same weekend! Thanks God!

Prayer requests:

-for quick processing of the documents we (my teammates) still need to get our Visas

-for me and my teammates as we finish up our support

Publish Post

don't waste your time! (or life)!

This morning I prayed that God would allow me to have a spiritual conversation with my workers today, and He completely answered me! Without getting into detail, I'll just say that the guy is challenging to talk to, and he has some pretty disturbing beliefs about satan. He used to be a sadist, he says, about 10 years ago. We chatted, and another coworker joined in who is also not a believer, but this conversation lasted about 20 minutes I would say!

I will admit that I haven't been a good steward of this summer painting job, in terms of really talking with my coworkers about Jesus. I mean, they know that I'm going to be a missionary next year, and they know that I'm a "good Christian girl", but I have not been bold in sharing my faith. So today I just said a quick prayer and look what God did! Its just one conversation, but I pray that its the first of many! At one point the guy, mike, jokingly said "well I guess she wants us all to be Christians by the end of the season!"

There are so many people in our lives that could just slip by without hearing! This hit me first when I was on summer project in Brazil, but I only am recently getting a true burden for the people in my every day life. I read John Piper's book "Don't Waste your Life" over a year ago, and I remember feeling really convicted about the fact that I don't take steps of faith toward friends, family, coworkers and strangers much at all.

I'm in the states for another 4 months and I dont want to waste it!

Praise God!

I have SUCH an awesome STINT team-- Praise God! He provided me with a precious WOMAN to join us next year! So now its me, Nate, Ben and Amanda.  I'm finally back home after being in Copper Mountain, CO for a 6 day STINT briefing conference, followed by a 4 day trip to Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin to visit a friend and have a few support meetings.  I feel like God has blessed me with a week and a half of fellowship, worship, learning, and a whole lot of FUN! I feel so refreshed! Colorado was incredible-- first, we were lead in worship by a band called Page CXVI.  They're an indie/rock band who re-vamps old hymns and a bunch of other awesome worship songs... you should probably look them up.  At the briefing conference there were 230 STINTers representing 33 different countries around the world who are about to receive a team of new missionaries, bringing the Gospel and the Love of Christ to university students!  It was SO incredible to think that within 4 weeks or so... most of the teams will have landed in-country! I, on the other hand... dont leave until around January 7th.  

I've recently begun being discipled by a precious retired lady named Kathy who attends Wooddale Church (where I have started going to the sunday evening service called "The Gathering".)  She is SO wonderful and a huge answer to my prayers! She has taught many adult-education Bible classes and is just brimming with knowledge and wisdom! She's also really spunky and has a great sense of humor :)  We have met twice already, and I have been learning so much from her! 

Today I heard a sermon at my friend Rachel's church on Matthew Chapter 5... being the salt and the light of the earth.  I felt pretty convicted that my "saltiness" is not as life-giving as it ought to be... and i've grown content with my comfortable-christianity yet again.  I am not only saved FROM hell... but I have been saved TO something... saved to be a blessing! I have been blessed to bless others!  Okay God, I'm ready!

good soil?

Mark 4:14-20

"The farmer sows the word. Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. Others, like seed sown on rocky places hear the word and at once receive it with joy. But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. Still others, like seed thrown among thorns, hear the word but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it and produce a crop--thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown."

A few months ago I read the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan. The book is all about 'luke-warm' Christianity, and how if we truly understand the CRAZY love that our God loves us with, we could never remain luke warm. I loved that book! It made me step back and really evaluate this comfortable Christianity that I've unfortunately grown used to. In one of the chapters of his book, Francis Chan cautions us: "do not assume you are good soil."

He goes on to write: "When we want God and a bunch of other stuff, then that means we have thorns in our soil. A relationship with God simply cannot grow when money, sins, activities, favorite sports teams, addictions or commitments are piled on top of it."

Has my relationship with God changed the way I live? I would joyfully and proudly say "YES!" But I think thats the problem... my pride. The changes in my life are not because of me! I should not be proud but I should be falling on my knees with the realization that I've taken my salvation for granted! There are so many people living empty, hopeless lives without the hope of Christ! Meanwhile, I sit back and sacrifice very little out of thankfulness, adoration and love for God.

So thanks for the warning Mr. Chan! I've assumed myself to be full of good soil, but have come to realize that I've let the thorns of my appearance, my pride, my agenda, my 'Christian activities', my apathy and my laziness get in the way of the seed thats been planted in my heart.

God, I confess that I've taken my walk with you for granted. Its become You, me and 100 other things on my list of priorities... several of which I have placed above you. You're all I want, and I pray that you would transform my heart into that of good soil. Clear out all these thorns! Amen.

nothing is a ritual.

I just finished reading "The Shack" by William P. Young. any thoughts? I guess I've heard a TON of people who despise the book... but I have to say I enjoyed it! A lot of people got all fussy about the book not being theologically accurate, but I just read it for the fictional story that it is. While it threw me off at first that God the Father was portrayed as a black woman, it totally made sense in the context of the book. God chose to reveal himself in ways that were completely opposite of Mack's 'traditional view', in order to make his faith more real... not the boring, rule-driven "religion" that he had grown accustomed to.

Nothing is a ritual.

I think this book was HUGE in my walk with the Lord right now. I suppose I have grown accustomed to the rules I have put in place that so-called "outline" what a relationship with God is supposed to look like. Nothing is a ritual! It sounds so simple! But when I find myself quickly blurting out grace as I'm already taking bites of my food, or sitting down to have a quiet time and forcing myself to journal some insightful thoughts... I now have to ask myself... Why? If I'm not doing these Christian activities out of an overflow of my love of God, then its all done in vain, isn't it?

As I continue to raise my support, I've noticed that my "ritualistic" quiet times have taken their toll on my walk with the Lord. As a result, I more easily am believing lies, or doubting in God's ability to bring in the finances that I need. When I meet with God on my own agenda I'm focused on myself and not on what He wants to show me. When I have an expectation that comes from this invented image of what my quiet times should be like... I get disappointed.

disappointed in... God?

***

Prayer requests:

1. These realizations of my "rituals" would be transformed into a deeper trust and intimacy with God

2. That I would continue to seek out the good works that God has prepared in advance for me to do... ie: blessing my family, friends, strangers with God's love that overflows

3. Support! That God would bless my efforts in making phone calls, setting up appointments, sharing my heart for this ministry with people that I meet, and bring these people to a decision in financial support.

4. A balance of TRUST and DISCIPLINE!!

God bless you!

beginning of summer update

Hi friends,

I write to you just shortly past the "half way mark" of my support deadline. Frankly, that frightens me just a tiny! I really dont know where I'm at percentage-wise, but I'll just tell you I've got plenty far to go.

Currently my life involves working 20 hours/week for my uncle who owns a townhouse painting company-- "Moen Painting". So, I'm out there painting trim around tons and tons of cookie-cutter townhouses. Its a nice change from the last 7 summers of working at DQ! Of course along with work, I am raising support for STINT. So far its been a struggle for me to try to figure out a balance of what my daily and weekly schedule actually looks like and what it is "supposed to" look like. Crusade tells me I need to be working at least 25 hours on MPD (ministry partner development) but wowza-- I know that I am not at that yet! On a positive note, things are picking up-- I have 5 appointments this week which is nearer to my goal of 6 per week than I have had so far! Praise God!

I had a really encouraging meeting with a woman from my church tonight who represents the Missions Board. She said something so simple, yet so necessary for me to be reminded of: "Dont be discouraged by a 'no' or an uncomfortable phone call. You never know what God is going to do with it." Plus, she continued to remind me that GOD alone will provide-- more than anything that I can do to network or work at raising my support-- its all in His hands. She is talking with our missions pastor tomorrow about budget stuff, so I look forward to hearing back from her soon.

I feel as though my schedule has been so busy in these first few weeks of summer, and I am thankful that God prepared me for this in my last semester of school. I'm able to go, go, go.. back to back errands and things without feeling like I'm about to explode. Even though this is feasible for me, I sense myself drifting away from the peace that God provides, and the rest that I get from spending extended time with Him.

"Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly heights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of all he created."

-James 1:16-18

Prayer requests:

1. That I would work diligently at MPD along with trusting God to provide for what I need

2. That a daily/weekly schedule would be made clear and that I would be prioritizing the right things at the right time

3. That my walk with the Lord would become more intimate and less forced; that I would be able to focus on Him and not all the things that I am doing or need to be doing.