2 months check in.

So it has been way to long and I apologize there is so much to catch you up on. 

Last week we had a couple Kat and Dan talk to us about "relationships." We learned some cool things during this week but my favorite part was the talk on our relationships with friends that build us up in Christ. It is spiritually healthy to have a couple people in your life that will hold you accountable in your walk with God! I am super lucky and blessed to have an awesome family who have raised me up with this teaching.  

We had one night last week where they sat us all at tables of four. We shared our first date, we shared the memory of our first kiss and such. It was a neat exercise to show how different everyones stories are. I was at a table with Will, John, and my friend Courtney. All our stories were so hilarious yet different. We were all a lot younger when our "first date" took place so to think of where we all are now compared to then was interesting. In Proverbs 4:23 it tells us to "guard our hearts." Above all else when thinking about relationships now, the number one thing to do is first take it to God. Pray and talk to God about it. This is a concept I think I have always known but maybe not necessarily put into practice. 

This week has been super intense and full on. We have had lectures in the morning from 9-1 and Evangelism at night from 7-12. Not a lot of sleep this week. One thing God has been teaching me is how to be uncomfortable. Sounds like a funny concept but man when your in it, it's tough!

(Ryan is with the black hat on.)

In Australia they have a week after graduation that is dedicated to partying. The 2 huge cities involved in this are Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast. There is an organization (has to remain nameless because apparently they have news stations that search web pages in order to post anything twisted they can find about the organization just for a good story, however I will post a picture and you can just read the name off our shirts) we worked with them this week from 7-12. Basically this organizations job is to make sure no one was lying in a ditch or if they needed help getting somewhere we were there to help out, call 911 and so on.. We handed out little gummy candies to these kids and they loved it! They know who we are by our t-shirts and loved talking to us. They shared so much with us, plus some. Michael Wood (one of my buddies) and I were walking on the beach handing out candy. Somehow I ended up in a deep conversation with this drunk 16 year old boy named Ryan. He was a sweetheart. He shared with me about his awful home life. He now lives with his 23 year old brother. He wants to go to acting school and become famous. Oh and he wants to have twin girls when he is 26. =)  I wanted to get his myspace so that he could email me if he had any questions but imagine this no one had a pen. Well he told me if I wore the same blue head band he would try and find me and give it to me the next night. Odds were not good considering hundreds of teenagers everywhere. Well the next night he found me with the blue headband on! Sure enough he had it ready to give me! I was so excited and remembered one of my buddies Kenton is going to acting school after YWAM. Kenton and Ryan ended up talking for an hour that night. Turns out Kenton had a rough childhood to just like Ryan. Crazy I think not, totally a God thing.

Then our last night was a little more low key. Michael and I sat in the same spot the entire night yet had some really neat/interesting conversations with kids. One girl who was 16 completely wasted sat with me for an hour or more lying on my lap. We did not talk much but all she kept saying was "I like you and I dont know where my friends went." Also a guy named Holly talked with us. His mom died in a car accident a year ago and he now lived in a shelter. The odd thing was he said he was so glad his mother died that he hated her. We did not really get in to deep with this boy but I want to continue to pray for him! He needs some friends. One more boy that stands out to me. I did not catch his name however he shared with us how "satan" wont let him die and "satan" brought him here. He basically believes "satan" controls his life. In normal conversation with this boy we just kind of said don't you think someone else does not want you to die (pointing up at the sky.) He said yeah maybe your right but how do I escape satan. We told him run from it and don't look back you wont regret it! He told us he had never really thought of that before but he wanted to go into the army so maybe that would be a good chance for that. 

Michael commented how cool is it that we can plant seeds in these kids lives and maybe we do not even really know or see what will come out of it. Overall it was an amazing week! I loved working with that organization and I wish we had it back in the States. Im bringing it to Florida for spring break week.. just a dream =-)

Being obedient plays a key factor in being uncomfortable. If God was you to do it, he is going to be with you every step of the way. So Im learning to "just do it."  An example of me being uncomfortable. Every Sat. morning we have surf evangelism. We go to Coolum beach and make the surfers pancakes and just give them out. Well I find it really hard to walk up to strangers and ask them if they want free pancakes. BUT I am learning how to do it and most of the time they take them! Certain people push me forward which helps (but don't tell them that.)

Well I feel like I am all typed out. Love you all and miss you so much!

Shout out to my sister who is putting on a benefit to raise money for me! LOVE YOU SISTA! You can find the link to her blog on mine!