Jumonville!

This past weekend the youth group went to the PYN Fall Retreat, Jumonville. It was a great weekend of speakers, music, skits, games, and just hanging out. We took 12 girls and 3 guys. Each time we go on a retreat, I feel as if our youth group really gets to know each other in a different way than we do in weekly youth group. It's amazing to see how God works in the lives of these high school students and I am constantly in awe of their faith in Him! Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Operation Christmas Child

The youth group participated in a service project last week called Operation Christmas Child. This is run through an organization called Samaritan's Purse. We asked the members of the church to bring in items to pack shoeboxes full of small toys, school supplies, and hygiene items and send to children around the world for Christmas. I set a goal for the youth group to pack 25 boxes. It was so exciting to see people jump on board with this project, and we ended up packing 56 boxes!! On Sunday at youth group, we organized all the items, wrapped and packed the boxes, made cards for the children, and prayed over the boxes. It is so neat to see the students in my youth group desiring to step outside of themselves and really think about serving God and others!

Cooking Class

This past Friday, my girls small group took a cooking class together with Leila. Leila is a member of the church who has her own catering business, Wonderfood Catering. She is an amazing cook and a great teacher too! We cooked Chicken Stroganoff, which is a popular Brazilian dish (Leila's Brazilian!) This was just so much fun. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to know each of these girls and to see all the ways God is working in their lives!

God....or His stuff?

I've been slowly reading Francis Chan's newest book, Crazy Love. So far I am enjoying it and it is causing me to reflect on my response to God. Chan's book focuses on what it is like to truly be "overwhelmed by a relentless God."

As I was reading today, one section really caught my attention, and seemed like a perfect message to be reminded of around Christmas.

"The best gifts in life are gifts from the One who steadfastly loves us. But one important question we must ask ourselves is this: Are we in love with God or just His stuff?"

This question really made me feel convicted. I will be the first to admit that there are times I am desperately in love with what this world has to offer me. It seems no matter how hard I try to resist it, some part of me wants more of this world than of God. I also think its easy to fall into a trap where we justify our love for "stuff" because all of it is created by God. Chan continues...

"Imagine how awful it would feel to have your child say to you, 'I don't really love you or want your love, but I would like my allowance, please.' Conversely, what a beautiful gift it is to have the one you love look you in the eye and say, 'I love you. Not your beauty, your money, your family, your car. Just you.' Can you say that to God?"

I long to be a person who answers YES! to that question, not just somedays, but everyday.

Happy "Peppermint Mocha" Season!

There are few things that I would say I am "OCD" about. Two of these things, however, happen to revolve around Black Friday.

The first of these things is that I absolutely refuse to listen to Christmas music until the day after Thanksgiving. (Don't even get me started on the radio stations that start it right after Halloween--I think it gets earlier every year!) For me, it usually comes on our traditional early- morning shopping excursion. All year, I wait with anticipation for the day that I can pop in my NSYNC Christmas CD (which remains in my CD player for the remaining month until Christmas). I realize that revealing this guilty pleasure of mine may be met with judgment and a few laughs, but let's face it, NSYNC just has a REALLY good Christmas album, so judge away! This brings me to the bad news, this year I searched high and low for my NSYNC Christmas CD...nowhere to be found! So I figured, no big deal, I'll get another one when we go shopping on Friday. No luck. I am still on the hunt. If you have any leads, please let me know!

Second, I force myself to wait until after Thanksgiving to get my first Peppermint Mocha from Starbucks, and let me tell you, it is always worth the wait! Once I drink my first one, I'm usually stuck on them for the rest of the winter season. I had my first one the other day, and it just tasted like Christmas! If you have yet to experience Starbucks' Peppermint Mocha, I would highly recommend a coffee run soon! (I recommend asking for it "extra hot", that way it lasts longer!)

It's so fun having silly little traditions such as these, and I hope you all have similar ones! It's also so exciting to think about all the new traditions that come with getting married and starting my own family. Crazy to think about!!!

Proud to be a Pittsburgher

Usually during weeks like this, when the weather is cold and rainy and when the sun doesn't want to shine, I dream of living in a city where I can wear less layers and where I can feel my fingers. This week, however, I was reminded of how much I love my city of Pittsburgh.

After a midnight shopping excursion the day after thanksgiving, Nolan and I bundled up and headed down to a very chaotic Heinz Field for the traditional "Backyard Brawl" between Pitt and West Virginia. Fans from both sides did their fair share of trash talking and chanting. The game was close and suspenseful up until the last few minutes, but in the end Pitt pulled out a win.

It's amazing to me how sporting events can really bring people together. I love the feeling of high-fiving complete strangers and it being completely normal! Then there's the classic "Go home Mountaineers!" chant that broke out in the stadium.

Still enjoying Friday's win, we settled in to watch the Steelers play the Patriots on Sunday evening. Although, we got off to a rocky start, the Steelers were on fire! I would normally consider myself a compassionate person, but if I am honest, it felt great to see the Patriots turn the ball over 5 times in the second half!!

A win always feels good, but especially when it's against the Patriots!!

All this to say, it's a good week to be a Pittsburgh sports fan, and I wouldn't trade this title for anything! Go Steelers!

Giving Thanks

On the eve of one of my favorite holidays, I decided it was necessary to have a post devoted to the wonderful celebration of Thanksgiving. It is easy this time of year to have a feeling of guilt because I know I have so much, and I also know there are people who have so little. This year, however, I decided to have a different focus. Instead of feeling guilty, I am going to honor God by actually thanking him that I do have so much, and for the fact that he has blessed me in so many ways so that I may bless others. When I started to make a list of all the things I have to be thankful for this year, it was interesting to me that all my "things" were not the first to come to my mind. Instead, it became a list of simple, and often silly, things that I am the most thankful for. It is these very things that I so often take for granted, but should be aware of daily. This list may sound weird to you, but each one makes me smile just to think about. So here goes...

drinking coffee out of one my favorite mugs

when nolan sends me texts in the middle of the day, just to say hi

living with awesome and fun woman as roomates

knowing that in six months, I'm marrying my best friend!

putting on a hoodie right after its been in the dryer

the clearance rack at Target

slippers

post-it notes that I use to remind myself of things (the main decor of my my office!)

afternoon naps (actually, naps are good any time of the day)

crossing tasks off of my daily to-do lists

being paid to hang out with amazing teenagers

waking up before my alarm and realizing I have another hour to sleep

living in a community where my friends have become a family

cooking with someone

pictures to remember all my life experiences

peppermint mochas from Starbucks (you can order them any time of year, but it only feels right around Christmas!)

putting in a fresh pair of contacts

going for walks

rainy Saturdays

DVR (to record my favorite shows)

"Let the Children Come..."

Anyone who knows me at all knows my heart for children and how my heart breaks for children in dire situations. Throughout my short life, I consider myself so blessed to have met so many children from so many different places and countries. As the holidays are just around the corner, I have been thinking a lot these experiences and all the children I have met. I often wonder what the holidays are like for them. Often, I think about the fact that there is no difference between me and them: we were all born into this world in the image of God, we are all children of God and we are all loved by Him. But for many of them, they were born into such a different "world" than me! I have spent many hours thinking through these things, and really struggling with them.

As I reflect on all the experiences I have had, I took a little trip down memory lane. I thought about my recent trip to Kenya and my trips to Mexico and the Dominican Republic and the summer I spent travelling throughout Russia. What a wonderfully beautiful world full of people God has created! Then I think about all the times I ask God "why?": why did someone so young have to get sick? why do bad things happen to good people? why are there thousands of children going to bed hungry and tired tonight? I could literally go on all day asking these questions. It is easy to wonder where God is in all these things. It's moments like this, however, God shows up. He reminds me that he was already in all the places I have travelled before I arrived, and he reminds me that he is there still today (even in the middle of Siberia where it can be as cold as negative 60 degrees!!!)

Some people that I meet come in and out of my life, and I may forget their faces quickly. But many of the faces of children I have met will probably stay in my mind forever. Because although many of these children have experienced pain in ways I can only imagine, their faces have more joy than anyone, and that's why I know when I remember their faces, or when I look at a photograph, I believe that am truly looking into the face of God. This kinda blows my mind, and I am reminded of how big God is.

There are days where I wish I had all the answers for the questions I struggle with, but then I am reminded not to take things for granted. To go where God calls me and to look at others through His eyes and not mine. I have seen God in so many places and people, but sometimes I have to look really hard! How can you see the Lord's face in the people around you?

Just for fun, here's some pictures of the children I have met over the past few years. I am amazed at how beautiful they are everytime I remember them!

Kenyan School Children

Some of the boys in Kenya

Nenet Children from a remote village in Siberia, Russia

A Russian girl named Tanya who truly showed me what unconditional love is

A few of the orphans in Mexico

This is a sweet little girl from the Dominican Republic

More energetic and beautiful Dominican children

Maybe this post has been me rambling my thoughts. Or maybe not. Maybe you have seen God in the eyes of someone around you. I have been considering ways to act on the passion for children that God has put on my heart this year. As a service project next month, our youth group is going to do Operation Christmas Child. This is a project which takes shoe boxes that people have filled with toys, school supplies, and hygiene items and distributes them to children all over the world. It's a great opportunity to serve God by serving his children! It's also something you can do together as a family, group of friends, couple, etc. It's not too late to put together a box this year, so I urge you to consider this (maybe even as an alternative to the typical Christmas gift exchange!) Here's the website: samaritanspurse.org

More retreat pictures...

S.H.A.P.E. Weekend

Last weekend, 10 high school students, one of my leaders, and I went on a retreat to the Cotter's cabin in Cook Forest. The weather was gorgeous and it was a great weekend! It was so nice to just get away with a small group of students and not be on a rigid schedule for the weekend. We cooked all our own food, slept in, and even had a dance party. On Saturday night I set up worship stations for the students to spend time working through. God really worked through this activity because each student spent time at a station which really meant something to them and helped them to connect with God. Here are a few pictures from the weekend, hopefully there will be more to come!

This is called the Fire Tower, not really sure why it was built but it was very high and had a beautiful view of Cook Forest.

Brandon enjoying the view

Erin, me, and Lexi trying to capture how high up we were

Most of the group

The girls on our hike