ok

"it's ok to not be ok... it's just not ok to stay there." - matt chandler

i have always prided myself on being calm, collected and steady. all of which i thought were good things. you know what the problem is though? for me, it's the word 'pride.'

i'm learning that i've got a lot to learn about, well... everything. i am prideful. i try and rely on my own strength. i have a hard time asking for help. the season of life that i'm currently in, doesn't permit me the privilege of self-conquering. i can't fix it. actually, i can't fix anything. i've tried and God keeps reminding me that i'm not big enough to do that. i need God's grace and guidance every moment, in the midst of every decision.

currently, i'm not ok... but i refuse to stay here. the lessons i'm learning, the grace i'm receiving... are true blessings. i am anxiously awaiting the moment when i look back and praise God for the changes He's made in me and through me.

in a previous post (from this past may), i wrote about the theme songs of my life. one of them being john mayer's "in repair." the bridge of this song has had a constant place in my mind for months, so much so that i asked a student to paint it in a picture so that i could hang it on my wall. i wanted a visual reminder of God's consistent work in my life.

thanks hollye for sharing your time and talent with me.

germany group shot

here's a picture of the entire youth group.

He's not finished with me yet...

with the craziness of life, it's easy to get overwhelmed. i'm so thankful that God knows what he's doing, b/c it seems that i rarely do. here's a new favorite song by brandon heath:

Brandon Heath - Wait and See from Provident Label Group on Vimeo.

if you have trouble viewing the video from here, click here.

a closer look into my time in germany

i got home late last night after a very long day of travel. i had been up for over 25 hours by the time i got home. but 3 flights later, i finally crawled into my bed around 11 pm. i then proceeded to sleep until 2:30 pm today.

here's a quick breakdown of my trip:

i previously posted about the first few days of my trip here, but i'll go back and include some pictures.

here are some views from the hotel. so this is what was outside the window while i was reading, writing, checking email, etc...

tuesday...

we took the students on an excursion to a place called, alpsee bergwelt. visit their website to get a better idea of what we did that day. we did a gondola ride, a high ropes course and a toboggan ride.

wednesday...

i got to go into sonthofen (the town our hotel was in) and explore with some friends. we walked all over enjoying each other's company and the views... as well as some gelato.

thursday...

we took the students on a long (very long) hike into the german alps. we came across a barn-turned-restaurant along the way and i decided to stop and enjoy the view and read and write while the group continued. i think my few hours alone on the side of a mountain turned out to be one of my favorite experiences on the trip. here are a few pictures from my view:

my trip was spiritual refreshing, physically exhausting and just what i needed to help me prepare for the new semester.

to view more pictures, click here.

super slow internet...

the internet here isn't cooperating, so i'll have to upload pictures later.

i've got one more day here. tomorrow, we're taking the students on another hike in the german alps. then on friday, i start my trek home. i leave the hotel in sonthofen and take a 3 hour bus ride to the airport in munich. then i fly from munich to amsterdam... to detroit... to dallas. praying for a smoother trip home than i had getting here.

thanks for your prayers and checking to see how the trip is going. i can't wait to get back and fill everyone in.

a random update on the trip

it's tuesday evening and i'm about to head to my room, shower and go to bed. my time in germany has been great. before i jump into what's been going on, i promised i'd update on my crazy travel situation.

when i wrote my last post, i was in a hotel room in atlanta, a stop that was not on my original itinerary.

sunday...
while at the airport awaiting my flight to munich, i was able to meet up with a team from FBC jacksonville (florida) and travel the rest of the way with them. we landed in munich (9.5 hours later) @ 7:50 am on Sunday. we then waited for 2 other flights to get in, so we didn't start our 3 hour bus ride to the hotel until around 2 pm. which meant, we sat at the airport for hours. which usually wouldn't have been a big deal, but i hadn't slept in over 24 hours at that point.

when i arrived at the hotel, i led worship for the youth and then went straight to bed.

monday...
in between the bible study sessions and worship times we took the students on a 2 hour hike... in the rain. we all got soaked, but it was worth it.

tuesday...
today we took the students on an adventure. we drove about 20 minutes to alpsen coaster... which had a gondala ride, high ropes cours and a 15 minutue tabogan ride. we had a blast, but we're all exhausted.

also, i met my other roommate today. her name is katie... we share a bed... and hadn't met until dinner tonight. crazy, huh? i'm always in bed before she gets to the room... and then i'm up before she is, so our different scheduels prevented us from meeting, which we both felt was weird. =) i found our other roommate and asked her to introduce me to her during dinner so that it wouldn't be so awkward.

things i've learned/experienced:

• i hate fizzy water. we actually spent 6 euros on a liter of fizzy water... dumped it out... and filled it with "still" water from the sink.
  
• the view here is amazing. i've never seen clouds settle around mountains like this before. i'll take a picture and post it soon.
• i miss having ice in my drink... and air conditioning.
  
• missionary kids lead amazing lives... and have some amazing struggles. it's been a blessing getting to know them. (we have 28 youth)
  
• if you want to conquer jetlag... stay up for 30 hours and then go to bed around 9 pm. worked like a charm.
• the german language is crazy hard.

i'm exhausted and i've got a shower awaiting me. i'll try and write more tomorrow and post some pictures.

This is where I waited in line for 2 hours yesterday. Wish it looked like this when I needed their help.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre