God is good all the time, all the time God is good

well this afternoon we finally got out into ministry and were able to have a great time. we sang some songs, did the itch skit, had a gospel message and then started some games. unfortunately i had a bit of an accident with a cement post and had to go to the clinic to get check out but the team did an amazing job! they really were flexible and pulled it out today. i was so proud of them. for a majority of the team it was their first time ever doing something like this in honduras and they were completely amazing! God hand picked this team and i am so certain of that as the week continues. in the morning tomorrow we are going to the day care with all the babies and it is one of my favorite places every =)

Dios es Amor

this morning after a fabulous breakfast we were finally able to meet with Daniel and talk with him about what we are going to do this week. we are going out this afternoon to a very poor school with 13-16 year old and are very excited =) we had the

morning off so we were able to get all of our supplies organized and ready to go. we told him we wanted to go back to a few places from previous years so tomorrow we are going to be going to a day care and hopefully bringing a nurse with some meds! we got everythin

g ready for this afternoon and tomorrow morning so we are all set and don't have to worry about it tonight.

Breakfast =)

Sarah Mark and Amanda blowing up water balloons =)

Jose and Sarah taking a little break with some coconuts =)

showers outside ahahah

pecado

God is already at work within our team and myself. the heat and humidity is putting the team way out of our comfort zones. things for children's ministry have gotten a little tossed around and we are being flexible flexible flexible. as of now we are working with an old contact Daniel, on probational terms in leu of a few incidents last year. we don't have any kind of ministry for the morning tomorrow because that has fallen through. we practiced our skit called 'sin trap' and will be debuting it at church tonight (hopefully videos to follow) the pharmacy has been set up and they have all arrived back home (as far as i know) and also we have wireless in our rooms so it is heavenly =)

i am so excited to see what God has in store this week for our team, and what he will do in me. things are starting to happen and become clear ;)

MIA

well we have made it to miami but are delayed here a little bit because of something with our flight attendants. it was a very interesting morning at newark. we found out that a few of our team members had some complications checking into their flights. then all of our boxes that we packed last week, the airline was refusing to check them, after half of the team had already checked theirs! with a little bit of negotiating they bought some duffels and switched the supplies. in the end God is good and he's got a plan.

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.

Psalm 46:10

bored in the airport

take a chill pill, and malaria

Steph, I'm the God of the ages, the God who rescued you, redeemed you, set you free! Don't you think that I have a plan, that I know what I am doing here? I have my hand on you where ever you go, what makes you think things will be different with the team? You can't do anything for them, give them to ME! Let me take care of them! I'm there father in heaven just like I am yours. -God

"But you, O Israel, my servant,
Jacob, whom I have chosen,
you descendants of Abraham my friend,

I took you from the ends of the earth,
from its farthest corners I called you.
I said, 'You are my servant';
I have chosen you and have not rejected you.

So do not fear, for I am with you;
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:8-10

oh 50lbs

well it's almost 11:45 and we are still attempting to pack! this 50lbs and under rule is a killer!! Pray for us =)

All staff choir at camp, bummed i won't be there on sunday for the meet the staff smorgesbord but i'm sure they will be just fine =)

the blog is back

Well I deleted my facebook in preparation for my trip to Honduras and I found I absolutely love not having it! So I have decided to not reactivate it =) This has led me back to the blog... I wanted to find a way to keep people updated on my life and going on's soo the blog is back =)

Spiritual Dejection

February 7 - My Utmost for His Highest Oswald Chambers

"We were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel. Indeed, besides all this, today is the third day since these things happened." Luke 24:21

Every fact that the disciples stated was right, but the conclusions they drew from those facts were wrong. Anything that has even a hint of dejection spiritually is always wrong. If I am depressed or burdened, I am to blame, not God or anyone else. Dejection stems from one of two sources - I have either satisfied a lust or I have not had it satisfied. In either case, dejection is the result. Lust means "I must have it at once" Spiritual lust causes me to demand an answer from God, instead of seeking God himself who gives the answer. What have I been hoping or trusting God wold do? Is today "the third day" and He has still not done what I expected? Am I therefore justified in being dejected and in blaming God? Whenever we insist that God should give us and answer to prayer we are off track. the purpose of prayer is that we get ahold of God, not of the answer. It is impossible to be well physically and to be dejected, because dejection is a sign of sickness. This is also true spiritually. Dejection spiritually is wrong, and we are always to blame for it.

Sometimes I am blown away as to how God gets my attention!

give me a revaltion

"give me a revelation, show me what to do, cause i've been trying to find my way i haven't got a clue"

i'm not really a big fan of third day, but the words of this song have been stuck in my head all day!

i need a revelation!! when i came home from africa i had a plan for my life, well now God has taken away my passion and i'm pretty sure, scratch that, i am positive he is asking me to have faith.

can Jesus speak to me through a sermon in a movie?? I think he just did!!! Wow

Praise God!!!!

would Jesus speed?

i have been thinking about what Jesus would actually do in a lot of situations today. for instance i was late just about everywhere i went today. no joke, i was 5 minutes late to my first class, then late to my meeting in common hour, and just about everything else!! so in my extreme effort to not be late i found myself speeding, a lot, and i wondered...

would Jesus speed?

i mean assuming that he had a car, and was taking pre calculus, and had meetings, and classes at church, and had to check on his little sister, and other things. part of me thinks that it would depend on what he was doing. like if he was going up the mountain to pray and was running late, that kind of thing. but then i think that would Jesus be running late somewhere? i think sometimes our vision of Jesus might be a little off, and so the question of if he ran late for things or not might be valid. but then i go back to the legality of speeding and when you speed it is breaking the law, and wouldn't that be considered a sin? and Jesus didn't sin so therefore he didn't speed right?

all in all the day ended with no answers to my questions and i am more confused now than i was when i woke up about what would Jesus do. please pray for me tomorrow!!

Be like Jesus huh??

ok so i have realized being like Jesus is a lot harder than i ever could have imagined!!! in situations i found yesterday where i could have acted like Jesus i kept thinking "shoot if i do this i will be late" or "that seems kinda sketch" or other things like that. so needless to say i failed at acting like Jesus because i once again let myself get in the way and over thought everything!

BOOKS =)

so tonight i bought three new books! my utmost for his highest by oswald chambers, forgotten God by francis chan, and the year living like Jesus by ed dobson. so far i have read the first month of january and want to live like Jesus hahah. now there is no way i know enough about the law to do that, and i don't even know how that would go for a woman, but it is seriously inspiring. i do want to look into hitting up a synagog and learning more about jewish culture and understand that aspect of Jesus more.

so my challenge for tomorrow.....

what would Jesus REALLY do???

Notes from Kenya

so i was looking for a picture and came across a note one of my teammates wrote for me. i read it again and it again delighted my heart! it's little times like this today that i am so grateful that i keep EVERYTHING!!

here is the note...

Father i lift up steph to you. i pray that out of your glorious riches, you would root her and establish her in love. i pray that she would have the power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep the love of Christ, the love that passes knowledge, is for her! (eph 3:14-21) i pray she would resist the enemy and his attacks against her. (1 pet 5:6-11) i pray she would find her comfort in you and not in the world. (psalm 119:76-80) i ask that you would guide her in righteousness, that she would seek first your kingdom! (psalm 23, matt 6:33) i pray that she would be willing to lay her life, with all the fears, joys and worries, down at your feet in a living sacrifice. (rom 12:1-15) i pray she would take her place in this chosen generation. (1 pet 2:9) i pray she would find her place of love in you and that the love of the team would pour over her again and again! bless my sister! amen.

strength and courage

being in the states doesn't mean i leave strength and courage in kenya!

"In the same way I was with Moses, I'll be with you. I won't give up on you; I won't leave you. Strength! Courage!...Don't be timid; don't get discouraged. God, your God, is with you every step you take." - Joshua 1:5,9

it's pretty easy to feel the power of the Holy Spirit when you have nothing else to give you strength. in kenya that was pretty much how it went! i remember one of us writing a message on this for the hospital one wednesday (i think it was diesel). God tells joshua "strength and courage" three times in the first nine verses! you would think that we could get the hint.

PUSH ME!

¹Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. ²Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. ³If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself.

Galatians 6:1-3

It's funny the things you start to you miss after some time. I never thought i would have missed bosse yelling at me for something or some of those talks outside angie's tent.

I MISS BEING PUSHED BEYOND MY LIMITS BECAUSE YOU KNOW I CAN BE SOMETHING BETTER THAN WHAT I AM

How He Loves

the "original' story

diana and florence were a mother and daughter i met in kenya, and two people i will never forget. their story is one of faith and miracles, that inspires us to fight and to have faith. since being home, i have forgotten the fight in diana, and i have forgotten the faith in florence. florence taught me to tell the stories of how God works, and how he is alive.

since being home i have not made it a priority to tell the stories. the stories of kenya, the stories from being home, or the stories of my life. there are different reasons as to why, but despite those individual reasons, one thing is unacceptable, they have remained untold. in matthew 24 it talks about how the hearts of many will grow cold...for our hearts to grow cold, they once would have to had been hot. i do not want my heart to grow cold, or the hearts around be. if we are in love with Jesus then our hearts cannot grow cold, and if we tell his stories of how he works and saves and redeems and lavishes grace upon us, then we cannot fall out of love with him, and we cannot grow cold.

here is the story of diana and florence...i hope you are inspired...and i hope you see Jesus in florence like i did...

The Story