Back to School

    A few months ago I applied for a ministry opportunity to work with women who have been forced into prostitution and children who are trafficked right here in America.  Human trafficking is something that I have been learning more and more about.  The more I learn, the more I am saddened. But also I realized how desperately these people need to hear the Gospel.  Who understands the value of our freedom in Christ like those who have been denied even basic freedoms; where to work or for how long, who they will have sex with, being forced to strip for men, etc. 

    Sometimes I will catch myself grumbling about how tired I am of my job.  Then, I remember what a blessing my job is.  It’s a Christian environment where I’m surrounded by cultural Christians (those who say they are Christians because we live in the south and going to church and saying you are a Christian is just what you’ve done all your life) and some who have really surrendered their lives over to Christ and the joy that is found in HIM. It is a wonderful opportunity to minister to young believers and to abolish the misconception of the “Christian American Dream”

    I was filling out the application, feeling pretty confident in my pursuit of this opportunity, when it asked me what my degree was in.  I had to leave the space blank because I didn’t finish my degree.  Sadly I wasn’t even able to submit the application because a degree was required.  I was slightly discouraged by this but not completely shut down.  I looked in to many other opportunities with well established organizations, but it was the same problem over and over. 
    This was very frustrating to me because a degree was not really needed to do what I wanted to do. As I voiced my complaint to many of my friends and other solid Christians in my church, they all said this similar answer. “You don’t need a degree to DO the ministry, but the degree says so much more than what you have been trained to do.  It shows that you are educated and disciplined.  These are things that will give you a reason to be heard by the people you are trying to minister to.  Also, many countries that need the Gospel most will not give you a visa unless you have a degree because it shows you can bring good to their country.”  After hearing this over and over I began to pray about going back to school and finally finishing my degree. 
    That was about 5 months ago, right before the Spring semester was over.  I wanted to go back to school as soon as possible, but all of the admissions and scholarship application deadlines had already passed.  So I finally came to the decision to apply for the Spring 2013 semester at University of Arkansas.  This is the nearest 4yr school to where I live. 
    Filling out the application felt like I was walking backwards.  I have learned how to live as an adult in the workforce and now I’m applying to be a student again.  So many doubtful thoughts were waring in my mind.  Can I juggle school and still work enough to pay bills?  Can I afford to go back to school?  How do I find and apply for the right scholarships?  So many doubts, but ultimately outweighed by the remembrance of all those who need to hear the Gospel and the Governments that want to see a degree.  Ultimately the remembrance that my God is able to solve and plan and finance all that I can imagine and more for His glory!
SUBMIT
Hitting that button was like exhaling after unintentionally holding my breath for a long time.  There it went.  Off to be reviewed and accepted or rejected.  Then came the waiting.  I received many emails telling me about how I can track my application.  How I can apply for some scholarships.  A variety of different things.  It seemed like it was going to take forever for my application to finally be processed.  Then, FINALLY, I received another email.  When I opened it I expected it to say something else about financial aid or “get to know us”  as I had received many of them before.  But when I opened it it said,
I’ve been in a state of stunned/excited/nervous ever since.  I can hardly believe it’s actually happening!  But, Lord willing, I will be learning French and Spanish come Spring, and on my way to a degree that will not only give me a platform for missions, but will also equip me for missions. 
    I’m very excited to share all of this with you.  It has been a long time since I last updated you, I know.  But rest assured, I am still living as a missionary put on hold in her own home.  So my “go” in the great commission is to Go to my Jerusalem first and for as long as He keeps me here.

Adventures with my Camera

I recently purchased a new DSLR camera.  A real one! I've always been into photography but just never really had the chance to pursue it.  Well here's my chance.  the first couple days I had it I went down to Dixon St. here in Fayetteville.  It's kinda like a Main St.  My goal was to take pictures of every one I saw!  which may not have been the best plan of attack.  here's a picture from that outing.

Most of my pictures that day were just of people walking, nothing spectacular, but I liked the sight of this professor riding his bike down the road.  Wearing stripes, no less. 

My camera purchase was just in time for Easter as well.  I went home this past weekend to visit my family, and finally take some pictures that I've always wanted to take.  There's this town near by that has an Old City!  So I went to Jefferson City's Old City to take some pictures of these gorgeous old buildings.  There's something about an old building that I love.  There's so much life that has happened in it.  There must have been!  Here's a few of my favorites from that outing.

My next big adventure was playing with Lucas, my nephew, at the park.  I haven't seen him in a while and I was afraid he might not be all that excited to see me.  He's only 3 and I only see him around the holidays.  But when I pulled into my brother's driveway I saw these two heads peeking out the window.  One was a friend of ours who lives with my brother, and one was Lucas yelling, "Aunt Ruby! Aunt Ruby!"  it made my heart leap with happiness.  I love to spoil my little nephew with trips to the park almost every time I see him.  He has grown so much since the last time I took him.  Last time I had to stay with him everywhere he went to make sure he didn't fall of something and get hurt.  But this time I could barely keep up with him to take his picture!  I think you will agree that he is the cutest little boy you've ever seen!  Or maybe I'm just a little bias.

I think it's safe to say that I love this little boy!!!!
I wont give you quite as big a taste of my next adventure, but I do have a couple favorites from it.  I went to Gatlinburg while I was home and sat in the Village to take pictures of all the people.  The village is a wonderful little area with lots of shops just off the road.  it has a beautiful fountain and lots of benches for people to sit and relax.  It's a great area to just people watch.  there are so many different people from all over the world that come into this town to experience the mountains and shopping combined.  :-)

I feel like she came out of an old movie and
ended up in Gatlinburg.

This woman was my favorite of the day.
I can just see the life she's lived in every line on her face.
Like a story waiting for someone to ask it to be told.

And Finally my last adventure since having my camera.  THE SHOTGUN!!
My dad got a shotgun for Christmas and hadn't shot it yet.  So we walked down the mountain to our property we own down there and set up some targets to shoot at.  This was my first time ever shooting a shotgun.  Sadly there's no picture of me shooting it, but my daddy makes a good subject for a picture.  He is the epitome of a mountain man.

Family Dinner

 

Tonight, my friends and I decided that we wanted to have dinner Thai/Chinese/Peruvian/Malawi style.  

All of us have been to these other cultures and one thing they all have in common is that they eat as a group.  there's never really the mentality of "I'll eat by myself tonight."  If that is the case, then it is not the norm.

There is this fabulous Chinese place right down the road from where I live and Stephanie decided we were gonna eat take out from there tonight.  one thing led to another and before we knew it we were on the floor around the table eating from these boxes with chop sticks.  

I got to thinking while I was sitting there that this is what dinners will be like when I finally get overseas!  I got all excited just thinking about it.  I remembered when I was in W. Africa and dinner was a community thing.  They made this huge meal and it seamed like the whole village ate from it (at least the ones who wanted to associate with the Christians).  Then I thought of a picture I saw of a family sitting on a blanket on the ground eating from a large dish in the middle of the blanket.  I can't wait to be back in the atmosphere where meal time is a time to spend with people.  Not to just satisfy this never ending hunger.

This is one thing I look forward to, and wish America would practice more often. 

There is so much I am looking forward to that I forget to LIVE where I am living.  The Lord has me where He wants me.  And He will send me where He has prepared a way for me.  But I have to remember that the Gospel is a lifestyle.  Worship is a lifestyle.  An overflow, a light that is felt and seen by those around us.  I heard a wonderful quote today about being the light.  Light is best seen when shown into darkness.

My calling is to go to the darkness (wherever that may be.  Arkansas or Africa or Greece) and shine the light that is within me, JESUS.  He is the answer to everything.  

Thank you Lord for friends and the blessing of relationships.  We Praise you for even this small picture of the Gospel and how the body of Christ can be brought together in our most basic of needs.

Luca's Birthday call

The names kids give their relatives could be published into a hysterical book.  "Top 100 funny names for relatives."  Kinda wordy but it captures the character.  

I called my nephew for his birthday yesterday, Valentine's Day.  When my brother handed him the phone I heard Jesse, my brother, tell Lucas that it was Aunt Ruby on the phone.  my heart leaped as he called me my secret nickname and said hello.  I asked him if it was his birthday and he basically repeated my words back to me as his answer.  So I told him Happy Birthday!!!  He just said, in the most adorable 3yr voice "Ok."  hands the phone back to my brother and says "It's your turn, daddy."

  

PREACIOUS!!!!

I love my family and getting to talk to them and hear their voices.  seeing faces and hearing voices fill a part of me that a simple message or text just doesn't do.

So happy, late, Valentines Day.  

Here's to all kinds of love!
Especially that of the Father's!

Week One of my "grown up budget"

It was one of those moments when you set out to do something completely unrelated to what was intended.  I sat down at my computer to look at a file and accidentally opened the wrong program.  Numbers, which is like Excel for Macs, opened and there were all these templates to choose from.  I saw a section that was called "Personal Finance" and I thought to myself in an amused kind of way, "I have no personal finance."  then it just hit me! like a flash of maturity that came over me.  I sat down and made a budget.  I really detailed budget that doesn't allow for any unnecessary spending.  so far I have kept to it pretty well.  week one was an overall success.  I did have to allow for some unexpected expenses in one category and it's a good thing too. 

This week I came down with an awful cold that completely knocked me off my feet.  And wouldn't you know, we didn't have a drop of cold medicine in the entire apartment. so I had to go buy some.  It's not as cheap as I was expecting.  I guess it's been a while since I've had to buy cold medicine.

I had gotten on my computer just to look at something and then before I knew it I was mapping out the next month, financially.  Even before I made this budget I've realized that I need to be more mature about things.  It's time to be an adult (even though I still feel like a kid)  

 

I RUN FOR PARUL

Sitting in a room full of friends talking about a half marathon isn't exactly my idea of a Sunday night small group, but we're no ordinary group of friends.  We are all training to run a half marathon for a girl named Parul. (a fake name that represents a very real girl.)  There is an organization that I've been learning about called  As Our Own. It's an organization that rescues girls out of sex trafficking, and adopts them.  They give them a life and a family that they couldn't have had otherwise.  

Most of the stories I read are about how the girls that they've rescued were born in brothels and their mothers were trying to find a better option for their daughters.  It is moving to read about the desperation that these women feel.  They want so badly to escape, but know that it is nearly impossible for them.  But they know they can save their children before it's to late.

Then there are the other stories that make you want to vomit because of the horrendous nature of how these childhoods were stolen from the most unsuspecting girls.  A couple of girls who just went to get a snack, but were drugged, relocated 1,000s of miles away from home, and initiated with the cruelest of methods.  I feel a righteous anger against those who torture and use these girls for their bodies.  My heart aches for the ones who can't get out, or don't want to because they don't know any other way of life. But then I feel great joy when I hear the stories about those who have been rescued.

This is why I have come to a decision.  I want to preface this by saying that I may not make it to my goal.  I am going to try and run this half marathon in honor of Parul all the money that we raise will go directly to As Our Own and the ministry projects they have to help their girls gain an education.  And have the Gospel poured over them so that they can find their true salvation in Christ.  The stories about how they've been rescued are wonderful to hear, but the stories about how they've trusted their new found life to Christ is even more glorious.

I wanted to post a couple links to some movies that 

As Our Own has on their website.  one about why I want to run, and one that shows how many girls end up in sex trafficking.

SEEMA

WHY I RUN

If you would like to sponsor me and help support As Our Own's ministry you can go to my race page.  There you can read Parul's story and learn a little more about As Our Own.

Oh The Places I Have Been

I thought I might reminisce about the places the God has taken me in the past few years. 

First was Mexico. But I don't have a picture for that.  It was all the seniors in our youth group.  It was a blast.  We stayed at the all expense paid resort.  They servers kept trying to give us alcohol.  I think we may have accidentally had some.  It was so relaxing, and a ton of fun.  It was also the only time I left the country and it wasn't a mission trip. (not counting when we went to Canada to visit my mom's peoples)

And then there was FRANCE, of which I have many pictures.  So here are just a few

Notre Dame Cathedral

Me at the Eiffel Tower

I went to France on a choir tour in 2008.  We spent 3 days in Paris and then 4 days in Nice and anywhere we could drive to within the day.  It was a jam packed tour of "let's see everything we possibly can and then sing."  We sang in some of the most beautiful cathedrals.  The sound was mesmerizing.  They had to sit us all down before our first performance just to make sure that we wouldn't lose focus during the performance.  

Next came Sierra Leone, West Africa!

This was my first overseas Mission trip.  But wasn't going to be the last.  while I was there I got to teach the girls in the village how to play soccer.  I gave my testimony.  We walk a ton! Mainly because the van kept breaking down. :)  In the picture above we are standing on the side of the road because the radiator in the other vehicle cracked.  Apparently it's a common thing.  But it gave us some extra time to get to know our African teammates.  The African girl standing right next to me is Katie.  I got pretty close with her even though she was only with us for a couple days.  We still keep in contact and everything. 

And of course we had to stop in London on the way home for two days.

I couldn't believe it when they told us that staying in London for two days would actually make the trip $500 cheaper.  of course we jumped on that.  we mostly did sight seeing and touristy things that didn't cost any money.  most of us didn't really have any more money with us excet for food and a couple souveniers.

Next was Haiti.  This trip came and went quicker than the time I knew I would go.  My college pastor asked me if I would seriously consider going on the trip if they helped out a bit.  I told him all my focus was on support raising for Thailand.  But by God's sovereignty in my life and working out some little details, I ended up in Haiti for spring break.  We worked with some churches there.  We taught the kids some fun songs and bible stories.  Then played soccer with them.  I would post some pics, but I have a video of my Haiti experience already on the blog.  You should check that out. 

 

And then, finally, was Thailand.  I know there's already a few pictures from there, but I thought I'd put up a few more. 

The two things I really wanted to do before I left was go to the zoo, and do Flight of the Gibbon.  It's a zip lining course through the jungle.  it was SO MUCH FUN.  I didn't get a chance to go to the zoo, but they had a nice little cardboard cut out scene at the air port. So we decided to take a picture in front of it with some of my friends.  So then the trip was (Kinda) complete. 

Well there we go.  all my overseas trips put into one post.  Enjoy