Cornerstone Bible Institute has begun it's 2010 fall semester! We are now two weeks into the school year, and I am excited! However, I can already see that it is going to be very different from my freshman year! But you know, that's ok. I'm looking forward to what God has in store for me this year, whether He teaches me through blessings or trials. I read this verse this morning. The last phrase caught my eye, and it was so encouraging:

"Let us therefore come boldly

unto the throne of grace,

that we may obtain mercy,

and find grace to help in time of need."

Hebrews 4:16

Isn't it wonderful to know what we have God's grace to take us through our times of need?

Sometimes it is easy to just say "God is good" but not really believe it or actually think that He is good to me. However, in one way after another, I've seen God's goodness and faithfulness this summer, be it from the way He has provided financially, to an amazing church to be involved in, to being able to participate in new experiences in ministry, to making new friends. Wow...

How have you seen God's faithfulness this summer?

I read Psalm 90 today and it was such a blessing and encouragement! Two verses in particular stuck out to me:

Verse 2 --"Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God."

Verse 12 -- "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom."

Some random thoughts from today:

• God has blessed me with an amazing church family!

• God can work everything out...sometimes it is just a matter of time!

• God can and will provide, but not always does that mean that I will get all of my "wants" and "would like to's."

• There are a lot of people out there who are hurting and need prayer--I need to do my part!

• It is a blessing to hear from people back in Brazil and to hear about what is going on there!

(No, I have not forgotten about finishing my update about the missions trip...)

Missions Trip, part 2

In sharing about the missions trip, the biggest question is "Where do I even begin?" I could go on and on about all of fun times that we had laughing together over one thing or another, sightseeing in Chicago (the Willis Tower, Michigan Avenue, Giordanos Pizza) and just all of the other everyday things that took place throughout the week. All of these things were a part of the trip, but they were not the real reason for the trip: there was more to it than just having a fun time and sightseeing. Rather, it was about sharing the Gospel with those who have not heard it and ministering to those around us! Everything else was just a bonus.

To sum up the activities of the trip, from Monday to Friday, part of the group worked at a day-camp from 7:30 - 5:00 at Parkwood Baptist Church, and the rest of the group ran a VBS for inner-city kids at the Harbor House about 45 minutes away from Parkwood. On Saturday then, everyone was involved in one way or another with running a three-on-three basketball tournament. We also sang several special numbers for both Sundays and the Wednesday that we were there.

To get a little deeper into what I actually did throughout the week, from Monday to Wednesday, I helped out with the VBS at the Harbor House in inner-city Chicago, working with children who pretty much had no church background. We had a Bible lesson, a missionary story, crafts, games, lunch, and also a time where I shared some about Brazil. More often than not, it would take several minutes to get the kids settled down enough to be able to even begin the lesson, not to mention the various times throughout each activity that we would have to stop in order to regain some semblance of a listening audience. Each Bible lesson, missionary story, game, and even the craft was a challenge. Interestingly however, as little training as these kids had in anything concerning the Bible, many of them often gave the "right answer" upon being asked questions regarding the Bible.

As much of a challenge as these inner-city kids were, by the time Wednesday rolled around and I had to say goodbye to them (as I would be at the day-camp that the rest of the youth group was working at for the rest of the week), I had become rather attached to them. In ways that I cannot explain or even understand myself, God helped me to get past the rowdiness and unruly behavior of these kids and see them for who they really were. As the day drew to a close that Wednesday, an almost desperate feeling began to overtake me as I realized that I would never be seeing these kids again; I felt an almost overwhelming responsibility to do my part in sharing the truth of God's salvation with them. I probably will only find out in heaven what kind of lasting fruit will come of those three short, yet totally amazing, stretching, and challenging days that I got to spend with around 30 precious kids!

(more yet to come...)

Missions Trip, part 1

Eighteen teens and four adults,

early mornings and late nights,

dozens of kids with tons of energy,

pizza and hot dogs, and then more pizza and hot dogs,

the book of Ephesians,

midnight showers,

toaster escapades,

a park known for its past (and also present) gang activities,

lots of laughs,

the Willis Tower and Michigan Avenue,

staring off into space in middle of the day because of the lack of sleep,

three-on-three basketball tournament.

What do these all have in common? They all are a part of the absolutely amazing missions trip to Chicago that I just got back from! Wow, remember how I asked prayer for this trip in a previous post? Well, I can tell that people were praying. It was tons of work, but also just as much fun. I absolutely loved every single minute of my time...

I think the past ten days were the highlight of my summer.

Wow. I'm not sure what else to say. This past week was absolutely amazing! What an awesome God we serve! More yet to come about the missions trip...