Paint War!

The paint war was a blast! I'm not sure who had more fun…the kids or leaders. But either way, it was awesome. They say a picture is worth a thousand words…in this case it's absolutely true. Check out the pictures from the night. We had tons of spray bottles and it was just a free for all! Huge success-this is definitely a new tradition!

Prom

This weekend was prom! This is a HUGE deal for our high school friends! Literally months of anticipation for this night. Meghan & I got to opportunity to go visit some of our friends all dressed up before the left. Here are a few pictures of some dear, beautiful friends of mine!

Linnea & I

Amber, Meghan & I

Caroline & I

Sophia, Kayla & Steph

 It was so fun to see these girls and support them in something that is so important to them. Prom is a tough night though. It's one of those nights that I dread every year and lose sleep over. There is so much that goes with it…the joy of getting dolled up, having fun, dancing, taking pictures. But there's also a lot of hard things…worrying about whether you will get asked to prom or not, not eating for 2 weeks before to fit into a dress, constant comparison, pressure of what to do after the prom, wanting it to be the perfect night. It's something that this culture has taken ahold of and has made it into one of the biggest nights of high school. It's so hard to watch the tears and drama and pain that comes with it. I'm thankful to be able to walk through it with them and be able to speak truth into their lives, but it's a tough 2 month period. Plus, a lot of poor decisions are made on prom night. Many, many kids, girls and guys, wake up the morning after in complete shame, embarrassment, regret, guilt. It's a heavy, heavy day and kills me to think about the halls of the high school the week after prom. All anyone talks about is who did what and who said what. We have been praying over this weekend for a long time and have to choose to trust that the Lord is good and loves these kids far more than we do (which is a lot, let me tell you). Please be praying for my dear friends in these high schools this week. Pray that the Lord would use poor decisions to bring kids to their knees at the foot of the cross. This week, more than ever, I'm thankful for the opportunity to walk the halls of the high school. To be a source of light and freedom in a place that is surrounded by darkness and shame.

Our friends in El Sal have food!

We just got an email from our friend Enrique, who is on staff with YL down in El Salvdaor. He has made an incredible video about the irrigation system that we worked on in February! Our friends will not go hungry this year, praise the Lord! Little Marvin will have healthy food to eat this year. What a gift, that we got to be a part of this.

Please check out this video! Look at those green crops! Love it.

YL Rancho Grande Irrigation System!

"Don't be afraid; just believe"

Tim, Linnea, me, Spencer, Kyle, Emmy, Langdon

The Lord is good! What a night. It was such a privilege to share the gospel last night. I got to share one of my favorite stories, from Mark 5, about the bleeding woman and Jairus. I had all eyes glued on me. It was so sweet. I shared about Jesus' compassion and power. Two of the scariest things in this world are sickness and death. Because they are totally out of our control. Yet in this story, we see that Christ has power over both of those. He offers the woman healing but also the freedom to live in peace, not guilt. He looks at Jairus and says, 'Don't be afraid; just believe.' Which at this point, from my perspective, after his friends came to him to tell him worst fear (his daughter dying) had come true, it seems valid for him to be afraid. But Jesus simply says, Don't be. Just believe. Believe what though? We like the control. We like to know what's going on and what will happen. But Jesus is powerful and he's in control. And he says just believe. Not, don't be afraid, and everything will go exactly as you want. or don't be afraid, and life will be perfect. But 'Don't be afraid; just believe.' Believe in someone who will not fail you, who will not disappoint, who is in control.

Emmalie & Maggie

Last night, as I was driving home, I realized just how thankful I was that we had more to offer than just games and songs. Because, let's be honest, if it were just that, they might as well stay home and study for AP exams (which by the way are next week…and everyone is STRESSED!) But there is more. There's the 30 minutes before club playing frisbee and taking pictures. There's 30 minutes after making smores and laughing. Or taking a walk and crying. And there's the 10 minutes at the end of club. There's relationships and there's Jesus. It's so much more than games and songs.

 

I had 20 sets of us glued to me last night as I was giving them the good news: there's more than just games and songs. AP exams. Prom dates. College. Parents getting divorced. Not eating for a week. Being lonely. There is good news. And they are all so desperate for it. They crave it. I have the coolest job in the world. Because I get to stand up there, talk about Jesus, watch them start to realize that this may be exactly what they've been hoping for, and then go visit them at school the next day. Go get frozen yogurt in the village next week. Meet before school, during lunch, after school, at night. All to talk about life. And to help them realize that there is good news.

So, the Lord is good.

Here's some more pictures if you're interested: Pittsford YL!

In awe...

Phew! The last 3 weeks have been a whirlwind! A whirlwind of incredible things, but a whirlwind none the less. I can't believe it's been 2 weeks already since our first club and I'm just now getting to share about it…I could easily talk for a long time about it, but I'll just give you some highlights:

My friend Marlaina & I before club

-It was a HUGE success. We had 3 desires for club: for kids to have some serious fun, for them to feel loved, and to get to talk about Jesus with them. And let me tell you, the Lord is good! We had 28 friends come out to spend time with us.
We had kids who used to come to YL all the time & kids we've never met before.
Kids who come to campaigners every week & kids our campaigners have been praying for to come to club.
Kids who know Christ & kids who so desperately desire him but have no idea yet.
It was awesome.

I got there super early (that's just what I do…go early, think of every detail possible, set up everything ahead of time, try to take out as much stress as possible), and ended up sitting on the picnic table for 25 minutes with "nothing to do". It was incredible, because I realized I am not in it by myself. I realized how thankful I was to be on a team. All I brought was the projector. My teammates & committee & kids were bringing all the rest. Praise the Lord he doesn't send us alone!

Here's where I saw Christ:

Trying to see what's going to happen in there!
Not totally sure what's coming = )

-My teammates: the way they served. It was incredible to watch. They worked so hard to get everything prepared, then as soon as kids started showing up, they were outside playing frisbee, hanging out, meeting and loving people. Way to go team!
-Pittsford Committee: they came to surprise & serve the kids ice cream sundaes after club! It was SO COOL. To have 6 adults there, on a Thursday night at 8:45, scooping out ice cream with TONS of toppings. The kids were so surprised and just felt loved. They got to see their school guidance counselor, their friend's parents, and people they didn't know. And they were all there JUST to serve them ice cream. They were in awe. (Plus, it was a real gift for the committee to serve & to really see the action. They work so hard, and to get to invite them into it with us was a real joy!)

Cowboy-Ninja-Gorilla
(Rock-Paper-Scissors taken up a notch!)

-Music: We sang and we sang LOUD. Some classics (Don't Stop Believing…of course!) and the kids LOVED it! I keep using all caps but that just describes the night. They were a little uneasy at first, but by the end of the night they were belting it out. They let loose a little and had some serious fun.
-Text messages: The hour after club is one of my favorite times. My phone just did not stop ringing, with messages from kids saying, 'That was awesome!', 'Cant' wait for the next club!', 'I LOVED THAT!'

Here's a link to the pictures that are on Facebook…my favorite part? check out the smiles. Come on! Does it get much better than that? First Pittsford Club!

Each color was a different ingredient…& they had to make
whatever hamburger we called out!
(This one looks like a cheeseburger with ketchup & mustard! maybe?)

Thanks for your prayer & support! I've said this before, but we truly felt carried!

***We have our second club tonight!! Super excited. The kids are pumped. They've been waiting for 2 weeks now. I'm giving the talk tonight (which is a testament to the Lord in itself, because most of you know, I wasn't exactly a huge fan of public speaking in the past…in fact, I may or may not have told Pete Hardesty freshman year that I would lead, but there was no way I was doing a club talk?)

-Please pray with us! 7:18 - set those alarms. Pray that kids would have fun, feel loved, and be changed by the gospel tonight!

Personal update...

Thanks for entering into this journey with me! I wanted to take a few minutes to update you all on how I'm doing personally…

I love it in Rochester. I really do. I love the people, I love my job. I'm so thankful to be here and feel like it's starting to become home to me (I barely use my GPS now! That's a great sign…) That being said, it's tough. It's hard to be away from my family, best friends, old YL girls. The distance is really tough. Also, the last 7 weeks or so have been challenging in a whole new way. I hurt my knee, not exactly sure how, but it's been a slow process since then. I woke up one morning and it was swollen and I couldn't bend or extend it. I've been to multiple doctors and got an MRI. Although they were suspecting a meniscus tear, it didn't show up. The only definitive results were inflammation and bursitis on my patellar tendon. I've been in PT since then (happened March 18-ish). And it's been a slow, slow process. I couldn't walk for 2 weeks (or drive) and was on crutches. (This may explain why the pictures from Wyld Life club) I am up and moving now, thank the Lord! Still slow. I go to PT twice a week. I can walk, do stairs slowly (only up…down I'm still one at a time), and today I did side shuffles at PT!

All that to say, the last 2 months have been tough. It's been exhausting, mentally and physically. It caused me to truly trust that the Lord is good, that I'm loved not because of what I do, but because of whose I am. As a region, we memorized Colossians 1:15-23 this year. And this is what I've learned the most from it:

"He is before all things, and IN HIM ALL THINGS HOLD TOGETHER." (Col 1: 17)

My world stopped for a little while. And it really challenged me to believe that in Him alone, all things hold together. I'm clinging to Him, and am still praying to be healed! I'm ready to run again! Or just walk down the stairs. Either would be great = )