What a chaotic week

I keep telling myself, "only 3 more weeks" "only 3 more weeks."

This week has been crazy to say the least.

I have had around 6000 words due for different papers, 2 take home tests due and 12 hours worth of weekend class. Oh and I was sick on Tuesday and Wednesday.

So that was my week, how was yours?

That being said I have had hardly any time to pause in the past few days and I will be going until Tuesday (I have another assignment and a midterm) AND THEN I can rest.

However this week I did get back into reading my Bible.

Fall 2015 I made it a goal to read my bible and journal every day. I always admired the idea of journaling and the thought of writing and finishing a notebook was very appealing to me. So I went out and bought a cute little notebook – I wanted to get one that was nice and wasn’t all that cheap so that I would be motivated to write in it – Since then I have been making it a habit to read my bible and journal regularly.

I have even filled up a journal and I’m half way through my second one!

I have also readjusted my goal, now I want to read and journal through the entire bible!

I must admit though, there are times when I do fall off the wagon. There will be times when I will go a week or two without reading or writing anything.

This usually happens when my schedule changes, i.e. reading week. I got mixed up in being home for a week and then coming back to school to a chaotic and busy few weeks, that my bible reading got lost.

I know that’s really bad, but hey I’m only human and I’m trying my best.

So this week I got back into it – reading my bible and journaling.

That’s my victory for the week.

Thanks for reading,

Em

a conversation with an old friend

Over the reading week I got together with my friend Marlee, we went to my favourite Starbucks in Saint John to sit, chat, and catch up. Marlee and I grabbed picked up our drinks; she got a Frappuccino and I got a peach tea and then we made our way over the fireplace and found some comfy chairs to sit and chat.

Marlee and I met when we were in fourth grade and we have been good friends ever since. In the past few years we have only been able to see each other about two or three times a year but every time we get together it is like no time has passed. We can talk for hours about anything and everything.

Well we have talked about anything and everything except faith and Christianity.

Until …

Last week (during the reading week) when we got together for coffee.

So Marlee and I have been friends for 13 years! Can you believe that? I’m old enough to have been friends with someone for 13 years!! (I literally just had to take a few minutes to let that settle in)

Me and Marlee. Summer 2010 

Anyway, we have been friends for a long time and we never talked about Jesus. I always knew that she didn’t really go to church (she would go sometimes with her grandparents) and she always knew that I did go to church, but we never ever talked about church. I never invited her to youth group or church and she never asked.

One of the reasons for that was because I was scared. I have talked about Jesus to others before, but usually it was with strangers or people I wasn’t super close with. I had always been afraid to talk about my faith with friends because, as bad as it sounds, I was afraid I would make the friendship weird or be awkward.

I learned from this conversation that it is not actually so scary.

I should mention by now that my conversation about faith with Marlee happened because it was a requirement for one of my classes but I’m glad that I had to do it, because it showed me not to be afraid to talk to my friends about Jesus. It was really just like any other conversation, it wasn’t weird anything.  

All in all, sitting and talking to Marlee was so awesome. I got to see and spend time with one of my good friends, I got to tell her a bit about Jesus, and I overcame the fear of talking to my friends about my faith.

Reading Week

Ah reading week a time to pause in the semester, relax, and get caught up on all the papers and assignments. Well for me the first part is true, however the last part is not. 

My reading week was full of family time, relaxing time, reading time (books for fun not for school) and gym time. Seriously all I did this week was go to the gym, spend time with my family, watch The Vampire Diaries, and read Before I Fall and 13 Reasons Why. 

(I did also go get coffee with one of my oldest friends but there will be more on that in a later post.)

And you know what? 

I'm absolutely okay with that!

This break was just what I needed. I've been having some serious senioritis the past few months. Graduation is so close yet so far away and I have had no motivation to do my school work. 

After a week away from school I am reading to go back and press on until the end. I have about a month left of classes, then Easter break, then exams. After that I'm off to Cuba with my family and when we get home from Cuba I have graduation! 

In 8 short weeks I will be done classes, done exams, and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts.

I can't believe it! 

Anyway, my reading week was so so good. Even though I hardly got any homework done, I had time to pause and take a breather and sometimes that is more important.

I've been thinking of this verse for a little while as I look to the very close end of the semester. I need to keep my eyes on the prize and press on for the next little while. 

"No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus is calling us."

Philippians 3:13&14

Thanks for reading, 

Em

planning & swimming

This past Sunday night myself, along with two of my good friends (who are also youth leaders) got together with some ladies from Lewisville (my home away from home church) who teach the middle school girls Sunday school class.

*Just so you know, these middle school girls are not the same girls I talked about in my last two posts: Winter Retreat Recap Part 2 and Part 3, but they are just as awesome!*

We all got together over some Dairy Queen ice cream (yum!) to discuss what our future small group time is going to look like.

The last Sunday of every month all the middle school girls, along with the lady youth leaders and the Sunday school teachers get together for a time of fellowship and fun dedicated to the exclusively to the middle school girls.

These nights are probably one of my favourite things about leading youth group at Lewisville.

On Sunday night we planned for the next few months and then for the next school year.

It was fun to help plan, but it also saddened me to think that my time at Crandall and my time at Lewisville could soon be coming to an end.

Sidenote: I am currently in my fourth and final year of my undergrad. I have applied to 2 different Education programs and I am currently trying to be patient as I wait to hear back. So there is a possibility I may be leaving Crandall for good after graduation in May. I will keep you updated!

After our planning meeting we all went to a hotel and met the girls for a fun time of swimming in the hotel pool and sitting in the hallway eating snacks. It was really fun and it was such a good time to just talk with the girls and get to know what goes on in their day-to-day life.

I love small group nights because with the hustle and bustle and craziness that is our regular Tuesday night youth group, sometimes it’s hard to really have time to chat, with small group we can just sit and talk for as long as we want; or until 8:30 comes along and its time for the girls to go home, whichever comes first!

Anyway, thanks for reading and come back next week to see what I’m to on my March Break reading week,

Em

building relationships pt. 2 Youth Leaders (Winter Retreat Recap)

I never expected this recap to become three parts. I always planned for it to only be two, but when I began to write the second installment I just had so many words begin to pour out of my heart. 

I think this winter retreat caused me to do a lot of self-reflection. Yes I learned more about preaching and I gained new experience from the weekend. However I also gained new love and respect for both my friends from youth group and my old youth leaders.

On the last night I stayed up until 11 with some of the middle school girls while we sat by this beautiful bonfire.

Last week I wrote about my friends from youth group and how I saw us in the grade six girls I stayed with during winter retreat.

This week I want to reflect on youth leaders and not only why I’m forever grateful for mine but I also want to reflect on how I hope and aspire to impact the grade six girls lives like my youth leaders did for me.

Before reading if you have not read last weeks blog you should do that now! You can find it here! Also if you’re interested you can find the first blog about my winter retreat experience here.

So now that you’ve read it you know a little about my weekend with the middle school girls let me tell you that the best part of Winter Retreat 2017 for me was getting to know and grow closer the grade six girls.

This is only 3 of the 11 girls I got to hang out with during Winter Retreat. This was a picture for our photo scavenger hunt. 

A bit of back-story:

Before I went away for school in 2015 I used to teach a grade 5 Sunday school class and I was a middle school youth leader (I love middle schoolers they are the best!).  So most of the youth at winter retreat I had either had in my Sunday school class or I was their leader when they were in middle school.

The only youth I really didn’t know was the grade six kids. I mean I knew them but I didn’t really know them well. I remember when they were babies and I remember when their families started coming to the church but I didn’t have a personal relationship with any of them.

My weekend at Winter Retreat changed that and I am so blessed because of it.

When I was a youth I was very fortunate to have had amazing youth leaders.

My youth leaders played the roles of a best friend, a loving parent, a sibling, a confidant, a teacher, a mentor, and a role model all in one.

Even though they had their own families and many other things to, they still took the time to invest in my life and my spiritual growth.

I remember when I was in middle school; my Sunday school class was a girl’s only class with about 6 of us in it. With such a small class and it being only girls, we were able to really get to know our teacher and talk about real stuff.

Every year we would have a middle school girl’s sleep over at our Sunday school teacher’s house and it was one of my favourite times of the year.

It was a time of fellowship for us girls and a time for our teacher to show us love and hospitality by inviting us into her home.

I give so much credit for who I am today to my youth leaders. I am so fortunate to have had many different men and women invest in me during my youth.

Although all of my leaders are amazing and have impacted my spiritual growth, there are two women who deserve special recognition. Even after my graduation these ladies have continued to help me grow, they check in on my regularly and even though I am no longer their youth, I still feel 100% comfortable to talk to them about anything and everything.*

When I think about my future as a youth leader, I hope and aspire to be like the leaders that have impacted me. I want to show my youth love and support and build a strong trusting relationship with the youth.

Now back to winter retreat …

When I was hanging out and leading the grade six girls a few weeks ago, I could feel God was tugging on my heart to tell me to keep these girls in my mind. I need to keep praying for them and stay in touch with them so that I can, like my leaders before me, invest into their lives and help them grow into young women of God.

I don’t know what it is but there is just something about these girls, maybe it’s because I see myself in them or maybe it’s because I have seen some of them grow up from babies to middle schoolers, but I just want to get to know and I want to minister to them.

One of the middle school girls watching the fireworks. I thought it was a cool candid so I had to add it! 

By the end of the weekend I was thinking “I need to go home and start teaching a girls middle school Sunday school class so I can keep pouring into their lives!”

I continue to pray for the girls, I hope to stay in touch with them, and when summer comes (if I work at my church again) I want to plan a middle school girl’s night so I can continue to get to know them.

So I hope by this time next year I can be their Sunday school teacher and I hope to have built up stronger relationships so I can be to them what my leaders were to me.

That's it for my Winter Retreat posts I hope you enjoyed them and as always, 

Thanks for reading,

Em

*Renee and Susan I love you guys!! Thank you for all you've done <3