Pentecost, Preliminary Goodbyes, and Plan Changes

Last weekend was Pentecost - the Christian celebration of when the Holy Spirit came into the room where Jews from all over the world were meeting for their annual festival holiday and the Spirit filled everyone with awe as the language barrier crumbled and everyone understood in their native tongues. Our church celebrates with a balloon release.  I love the celebration in this tradition... watching the balloons fly away with the notes from the kids. It's like we get to watch the Spirit take the balloons wherever they may serve as an encouragement (and they're biodegradable balloons so that makes the litter aspect better :) )

This year's Pentecost had an added fun event of a party... for me.  Although I often cringe at the thought of that  much attention, particularly during a time when I'm already emotionally toast, the party was so incredibly special and the notes I've received have enjoyed many readings.  Love is a powerful and potent emotion, and it feels so good to both love and receive.

I'm going to really miss everyone out here.  The final get togethers and youth groups with Touchet high school, Surge, and Mid-High Youth Group have been so hard.  I am so grateful for my CPPC church family as well as all the community and support that people all over Walla Walla have shown.  I love the kids at our church and on the swim teams, the professors, staff, and students at Whitman, the great people and kids in Touchet, and so much more.  It's good that I'm sure I'm following God's will or else this would seem like the most ridiculous decision of my life.

It sometimes still does though... especially on fun weekends with friends coming over, harassing the dog, playing badminton in the backyard, and THEN having the aforementioned fiestas and following it up with a week of youth groups, hanging out with kids, and taking an awesome elementary school girl who collected food for her birthday to the foodbank to drop it off... 









What an amazing community this is!

And... to top it off...
another cake!

Thanks Peggy and Kim and the whole CPPC crowd!

__________________________
Changing gears...

Suzanne is here and we're heading out on our road trip on... TUESDAY!  Yes, that is in 4 days and No, i am not packed.  That's why I'm writing a blog and updating my itunes. 

One of my seminary professors/advisers, Mark McCloskey, either developed or propagates (He knows it well!) a model of Transformational Leadership that really makes sense.  One aspect of the model is that leaders should be DICE+1 people.  The I in DICE is Intellectual Flexibility.  Suzanne and I are practicing that right now.  


Our new roadtrip plan... due to many circumstances... is to not do the 48 states but instead focus on west of the Mississippi (yes, Minnesota is considered west because I REALLY want to go there!...).  Right now, our plan for this week is to drive to San Diego to visit Carrie Clausen... the youth intern of the century... and then from there, we'll either make a plan or just start playing the right, left, straight game (Derecha, Isquierda, Derecho! that's my Spanish for the day).  I'm excited for this... the spontaneity will be fun and we get to play a WHOLE bunch.  
 
Prepare yourself for many stories and pictures... I have my last  final from the road next week and then my primary life foci will be reigniting life with God, learning Spanish, and recording many ridiculous stories from our adventures.


Off we go!

Things I'm grateful for and things I'll miss...

 This is probably the first of many posts with this title, or at least this gist, BUT... there are so many things I'm thankful for and that I'm going to miss that I just have to share!

- KIDS!  I just had my last children and family ministry events (outside normal Sunday mornings) and they were just a blast.  Kids are amazing... I highly recommend my assumed role of the crazy fake aunt who creates fun (chaos?), teaches kids about the magical explosive possibilities of Mentos and Diet Coke, and proceeds to send them home after hopefully instilling some life lessons, truths, and relationships that stick. Between being schooled by 6yr olds numerous time in TicTacToe, watching the kids dogpile on Toby the dog, and taking 3rd graders kayaking, it was a pretty good weekend and I have got to say that kids still prove to be the greatest.

- Touchet - oh man, as I'm finishing up my onsite ministry work there (you Touchet people will never leave my heart, mind, facebook, and phonebook), I'm so grateful for how this town has welcomed me in, allowed me to learn about the families, individuals, and community, and has worked with me as I have grown in my own ministry potential and abilities.  I am so happy I have had this opportunity and that God has done and will continue to do amazing things in the Touchet community.

 

- Kayaking!  This weekend, one of my roommates and good friends from college came up to visit.  We went on a great paddle... AND it included cliff jumping!  What could be better you might ask?   Well, if we would have gone to an amazing chocolate shop or walked Toby to elementary softball games in the park...  And don't worry, those happened too!   It was just all around good.  THEN, to top everything off, the illustrious Bobbie and Lish joined me in the aforementioned 3rd grade kayaking extravaganza. Help is fun and a VERY GOOD thing =)

- Supportive people from the past... Oh man was I in for a surprise yesterday when I got a call from my mother informing me that Fox Island United Church of Christ had raised $1600 for my Guatemala trip in only one day.  I knew that they were going to speak about me and the mission trip, but I never imagined that there would be so much love (and that they would remember me!).  I'm so grateful financially, and even more so to know that there are people praying!   I like to have a lot of people on my team! 

And evidently they are, because check out this crazy/terrifying/insane/awesome cake!  (THANKS, CATHERINE!)

 

Leaving Bethel...

Three years ago, I graduated from Whitman College fortunate enough to have a great job at CPPC and fun opportunities for coaching. I was also signed up for Seminary at Bethel in St Paul, Minnesota, but not sure what to expect, I chose not to think about it too much. Seminary started when I was visiting Nora in China. Seeing the syllabus for Hermeneutics and course schedule for Transformational Leadership, I started feeling overwhelmed and wondered why God was having me go to Seminary. Then, when I began reading our introductions to one another and I realized that I was the youngest and least experienced student who was suddenly, hanging out with accomplished pastors, fathers, missionaries, and other amazing, strong people, I really started getting overwhelmed. That's when I went to sit at the beach while Nora taught (I think best by the water, that's why I kayak). As I was sitting there, looking toward Seattle (far, far away), I was chatting with God and asking questions. While sitting there, I felt God quietly say, "I'm going to rock your world with Seminary". I didn't know what to expect, but the knowledge that God was going to do something in me meant that He was going to be with me, so I felt much more equipped. The last four years have been crazy. I have learned about God, about leadership, about myself, and about how they can all fit better together. The classes I've had the opportunity to take and the knowledge that the church was 100% supporting me in this crusade were life-changing. I now see that I'm not equipped to do ministry and the best part is that none of us are. We are not equipped to do ministry without God (you may say duh.... but it's a tough lesson to learn sometimes) and we're not equipped to do ministry without community, trust, and friends. In fact, we're not equipped to do life without either of these things. I am so incredibly grateful for the staff, faculty, and students at Bethel. My cohort (L!) has become my family: my big brothers, roommies, and some of my best friends. We have gotten in trouble for throwing frisbees in inopportune places, rung the bells, played a lot of football and frisbee, drank a lot of Caribou, climbed things, and made friends with Frenchy the lunch lady. More importantly, we have had times to pray for one another, walked with one another through some really, really rough things, and gotten to know each other in ways I never conceived possible. God was right when we were chatting in China. He did rock my world... in every sense of the phrase. I now know that community like this is plausible and I want to continue this community with these amazing people, and I want to find it again wherever life may take me. I have one paper and one exam left in my Seminary career. I'll officially have my Masters of Transformational Leadership on June 5th. It was an amazing road... actually, no, it was an amazing on-ramp as I have gotten on the great highway of life, ministry, and healthy relationships. Thank you to everyone who made it possible and enjoyable! Thank you God for holding your word given in China and really rocking my world.